The Solar Demise
by Pinku
Summary: The prospect of the end of the world causes Akane to realize what and who she really cares about in life. Becomes AU, rated for language and future content. New: Chapter 10 completed!
1. In Another Lifetime

Solar Demise - or - Oblivion has Gained on Us  
by Pink  
A bit of warning first:  
I think this story is going to be rewritten yet again, so I may as well try to solicit any kind of good C+C you guys may want to bestow on me. Bring it on, please! ^^/   
  
Oh, and try not to take it too seriously, as I most certainly don't. ^_^  
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Part One - In Another Lifetime  
  
We all thought it was a heat wave, therefore, nobody paid any mind to the rise in temperature. Hell, I was downright thankful for the heat. I never mentioned it but in truth, I wasn't too fond of hiding my figure under overcoats and sweaters. Then again, I never made much of an effort to show off my figure, anyway. Nabiki has told me time and time again that I should really check out the clothes in fashion magazines these days, they would flatter me. "We should make a trip over to Shibuya some time and invest in some real clothes... maybe even get something for you that shows off a little more skin, Akane-chan?"  
  
"Nabiki Onee-chan," I would reply in an indignant tone, "I don't want people to see where my children will come from!" I keep telling myself that nothing earth-shaking happened that day, but it's something that sticks out in my mind anyway.  
  
"Akane-chan, I never implied that we needed to show THAT much skin, just... something with a bit more excitement. You know, it IS socially acceptable to show your belly button these days." While marveling at Nabiki's persuasive powers, I wondered if part of her ability lied in the fact that maybe she knew people better than they knew themselves. Because of my past experience with boys who were unhealthily interested in me I remained a little wary of looking too cute, but another side of that me enjoyed the flattery.  
  
"But..." I tried to argue but I was already convinced.  
  
"And it's not like you don't have the figure to wear what you like, Akane." That was Nabiki's finishing blow.  
  
The next day I sent my porcelain Seramyu bank to a messy death as I spiked it off of the floor. I counted enough money to buy an entire new wardrobe, and the best part was that I only saved that money because I frankly didn't have anything interesting to buy.  
  
Nabiki was enthusiastic about accompanying me as my fashion consultant (at the cost of some new clothes, of course) when we finally got off the train and headed towards the nearest shops. In each store the routine was the same. We walked around collecting whatever looked remotely cute and I was pushed into the dressing room to weed out what I liked.  
  
The day progressed and by the time we came home we looked as if we fell out of a fashion magazine. I pretended not to notice how Ranma'a jaw dropped when we walked in, and tried hard to suppress a big dopey grin. Before I could take both of my shoes off in the genkan, Shampoo showed up for her routine visit, which usually consisted of rubbing up against Ranma while I beat him to death. I felt my anger beginning to stew and made a break for my bedroom before my day was ruined. What separated this time from the others, however, was how deftly Ranma evaded her, twisting away from her grasp and leaping up some stairs to catch up to me.  
  
"Akane, when did you start dressing like THAT?" I turned to blink at Ranma and noticed Shampoo making a second attack as Ranma peered into some of my bags. "What else do ya got in here? You actually look pretty decent." I made no effort to hide my smile this time, though part of me was a little disappointed at the fact that all I had to do was change some clothes to get attention. Shampoo reached the bottom of the stairs.  
  
"Couple of dresses, shirts, pants, skirts, shoes... when were you so interested in women's clothing?" I grinned until Shampoo caught up to Ranma and held tight. Ranma wordlessly pushed her off of him and ran to the top of the staircase. I watched Shampoo cautiously, but all she did was glare and leave. She looked as if she were mumbling something under her breath.   
  
"Um..." Ranma twiddled his thumbs. "Would you mind showing some to me?" He coughed indignantly and started to rub the back of his head. "'cause.. I don't really got anything to do right now, so... er.. I'm a little curious."  
  
"You mean you want me to model them for you?" I raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Er, uh, I was just curious about whatcha bought..." Ranma's face reddened a bit. "It's, ah, not like I want to gawk at you like some letch!"  
  
It was weird, but so was the rest of the day. I laughed and led Ranma to my room.  
-=-=-=-=-=  
Summer came after that unseasonably warm spring, and we had to wear less clothing in order to combat the heat. Some of the clothes that I bought with Nabiki were perfect for this weather. It was uncomfortable to be in the sun, even early in the morning when the air was supposed to still be cool.  
  
A pair of cutoff shorts borrowed from Nabiki ended up being my favorite thing to wear around the house. Nobody will ever hear me admit it aloud, but I enjoyed taunting Ranma with them. While he was used to looking at his own naked body (in female form), looking at mine was a different story. More than once I made a point to bend over in front of him and to my delight he squirmed. Dad and Saotome Ojisan took this as a sign that Ranma and I were getting along and on the fast track to marriage, and spent time celebrating on occasion. I wasn't enthusiastic about humoring them on this but it was simply too much fun to pick on Ranma.  
  
The heat wave continued beyond the end of summer vacation. At first, I had to wear sun block to school and carry extra deodorant wherever I went. Ranma and I went to school with either a water bottle or extra change to buy ice in order to stand the walks home. I had to hide my blushing on days we bought ice. Ranma would carefully run it along his body, careful not to activate his curse. When he wasn't looking I would watch the ice melt into drops that rolled down along his neck and disappear under his tank top.  
  
The first year of the heat wave, we were forced to wear our winter uniforms for gym class, despite the heat. Each day I prayed for class to end quickly so that I could wear a nice ventilated dress.  
  
Around springtime of the following year, we received news reports saying that there was something wrong with our solar system. It was a known fact that the sun was always slowly expanding and would eventually swallow up some of the inner planets of the solar system, but something like that was supposed to take thousands of years. Scientists were unable to explain why the sun was swelling at such an accelerated rate. The planet Mercury was already close to being obliterated and it was only a matter of time before it would be too close for our planet to be livable.  
  
There were nothing but scientists on TV after that. They talked about all the possible things that could be done to save ourselves, but every theory came down to the fact that we didn't have the means, the technology, or the resources. Nobody wanted to admit that we had to count on the fact that we were going to die within a handful of years.  
  
To describe what happened to people after they realized this was all in understatement. Companies closed in waves, along with many small shops and businesses. When I asked the owner of a takoyaki shop, Iruka-Ojiisan, why he shut down he patted me on the head and chuckled. "Akane-chan, the world is going to end soon. Would you spend the rest of your days doing menial things you don't enjoy? Isn't there something you've always wanted to do, Akane?"  
  
I shrugged my shoulders in response. I never saw myself as anyone with a mission in life. Sure there were some... ...annoyances in my life but they were nothing too serious. I was relatively happy where I was, no matter how many times I grumbled and exploded in fits of anger in the past.  
  
A number of retail stores that closed gave away their extra merchandise. People flocked to shopping centers all over Tokyo in order to take advantage of this. Just as predicted, Saotome Oji-san left one day, glee spread thick all over his face and mumbled something about watching "the crazies duke it out over paper plates." Nobody was surprised when he came home late that night, hauling in junk by the crateful.  
  
Communication suddenly became a valuable commodity, and the people who worked for phone companies, ISPs, radio, and television were paid handsomely in commodities like fresh water and supplies. Clean water and electricity were appreciated more than ever, and running water was a downright luxury.  
  
Most schools shut down. Very few dedicated teachers and students held classes outside of any school district's jurisdiction. Furinkan was one of the schools that shut down permanently. Without much to do besides hanging out with Yuka and Sayuri on occasion, I spent my time trying to polish my martial arts skills.  
  
When I did go out, I noticed trends in the way certain people acted. Some splurged on everything as if there were no tomorrow (I hate that phrase). They threw extravagant, lavish parties and burned away massive amounts of water, food, and electricity. Overly-conservative types would use everything sparingly, staying in their homes as far away from the outside world as possible.  
  
The habit of adjusting to strange and new situations caused our family to live as "normally" as ever. By now it was a conditioned reflex. I wondered how Ranma saw this situation. Did he still care about being the best martial artist he could be? I wanted to look to him for an example of what I was supposed to feel, or what I was supposed to want out of life now. Unfortunately for me his feelings were as hard to read as some of his moves. Ranma, what will you do?  
  
...when I forced myself to think about it, I realized what I truly wanted. It was best not to think of it.  
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Author's Notes: (September 2002)  
Years after writing the original verson of this story I recently took the time to reread it. Blech, it was crap. The same mindset I had in the beginning was changed due to things I experienced in real life. The thoughts and feelings I originally gave Akane were random and sometimes irrelevant in the earlier chapters. I thought I had carefully thought out how she was going to act but it still wasn't very good when I reread it.  
  
In short, the story sucked. I'm trying to make it more bearable; maybe even enjoyable? ^^;  
  
Hm. Either way I only do this for fun. I'm not a real writer unlike some of these other fanfic-weavers, muah hah hah hah! XD If I go crazy maybe I'll quit this silly WRITING thing and turn it into a manga since my specialty is with an inking pen as opposed to a writing pen. ^_~ 


	2. Lavender Punch

Solar Demise - or - Oblivion has Gained on Us  
by Pink  
A bit of warning first:  
I think this story is going to be rewritten yet again, so I may as well try to solicit any kind of good C+C you guys may want to bestow on me. Bring it on, please! ^^/   
  
Oh, and try not to take it too seriously, as I most certainly don't. ^_^  
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Part Two - Lavender Punch  
  
I didn't hate it, but I didn't particularly enjoy the frigid-wet sensation of cold ankles whenever my socks were soaked from walking in the rain for too long. I never thought I would miss how water creeped into my shoe after stepping through a deep puddle. Things that were an annoyance in a different situation would be a godsend, if they were to happen now.   
  
Where was P-chan? He seemed to show up on many rainy days, and it was an exceptionally long time since anyone had seen him. Normally I wouldn't be worried, but the fact was that we suddenly lived in chaotic times. It wouldn't be a stretch for someone to spot him on the street and suddenly have an urge for barbecued pork.  
  
Besides something obvious like rain, other simple pleasures in life had disappeared. Districts like Akihabara and Shibuya were ghost towns, devoid of the bustling crowds that their shops once attracted. Things like browsing in a department store had become memories. More than that, they would have helped to remedy my immediate problem of boredom. I spent hours staring out the window, watching whatever passed by. I envied everyone I saw. They hey had somewhere to go and things they wanted to see or do, even in a time like this. One man in a blue car, a middle-aged couple, a man in tall geta, a girl my age, and a group of little kids were doing something while I sat and wasted more hours of my last years on earth. When I heard the little kids laughing as they passed, I wished that I was young and oblivious again.  
  
A knock on my door yanked me out of my thoughts.  
  
"Come in."  
  
All right, I thought. A distraction. The knob turned and clicked, the highlight on the metal wavered and Saotome-Obasan stepped in.  
  
"Hi Obasan, how are you today?" My smile was genuine because now I had something to do. I moved to my bed so that she could sit in the chair at my desk.  
  
"Ah, so you ARE up here." Even in morbidly hot weather, Saotome-Obasan continued to look well-kept. She wore a lavender kimono that had pale, mint-colored flowers scattered sparingly across certain areas of the fabric. Her hair was neatly twisted and bound tightly to her head and pinned to the sides, with a couple of real cherry blossoms as an accent. She headed to the chair and sat, straightening out her kimono to keep the wrinkles to a minimum. "Did you even have breakfast today, Akane-chan? How long have you been awake?"  
  
It was around one o'clock now. "Since about ten, I think." I leaned to stretch my back out a little. Come to think about it, I didn't have breakfast today. Did I have dinner last night? Ah well, it didn't matter. I didn't feel very hungry and I wasn't using much energy sitting around, anyway. "What brings you up here?"  
  
"Oh, nothing urgent, I was just curious as to what you were up to. There isn't any housework that your sister will let me handle, so I decided to come and talk with you... if that's all right?"  
  
Glad to have something new to do and someone else who shared my sense of boredom, I smiled. "Of course! Is there anything you'd like to talk about in particular?"  
  
"No, not really. I just wanted to be in the presence of some pleasant company is all." Saotome-Obasan smiled, and I recognized immediately where some of Ranma's facial features came from. "Are you sure I'm not preventing you from doing something?" The fact that she was leaning more comfortably into the chair showed that she already knew the answer. She was one of the few people who could easily read me.  
  
"Absolutely sure." That was my prompt for her to start talking.  
  
"I'm glad you're not too busy for this old woman," she laughed. "So have you done anything interesting today...?"  
  
=-=-=-=-=-=  
  
Our talk came to an immediate halt when we heard, "Ranma, will you date with me?" Only one person owned such an irritating and badly-accented voice. That same person had a tendency to squeal, "Wo ai ni!" in such a way that made the hair on the back of my neck stand up.  
  
"Shampoo," I hissed under my breath while I headed out the room. Saotome-Obasan followed, slightly surprised at my change in tone. I gripped the banister and headed downstairs, suppressing the urge to shatter the banister. Near the base of the stairs I spotted her throwing away her pride once more while she pressed against Ranma. My fists clenched. I walked up to the pair, tapping my foot loudly while Ranma's eyes begged me for mercy. How was I supposed to retain any dignity if my father and Ranma's parents insist that we're engaged while Ranma allowed things like this to happen? It wasn't like it was one accident, either. The fact that it happened on a regular basis made the situation more embarrassing. Didn't Ranma understand any of this? There was also something unbelievable about the fact that a highly-skilled martial artist like Ranma was incapable of prying a single woman off of his body.  
  
I sighed in disgust and raised my mallet high into the air.  
  
"A-akane-chan..?" squeaked a barely audible Saotome-Obasan. I never took into the consideration that I had the intent to mallet her son in front of her eyes. That was a thought that was the furthest from my mind at the moment, especially. I brought the mallet down with considerable strength, feeling nearly relieved when I felt it connect with a head. The next step was for Ranma to freeze and pass out, forcing Shampoo to withdraw, and all would be right with the world.  
  
I was sick of even bothering to look at him. I dusted my hands and turned to walk away before barely missing a kick that flew within centimeters of my head. Looking behind me in bewildered surprise I noticed that Ranma was perfectly fine, and Shampoo had a nasty lump forming on her head. Her red chi flickered briefly as she lunged towards my torso. As soon as I blinked I felt a sharp pain in my stomach. The pain prevented me from taking a breath for a brief second, and once I took a breath my stomach burned. Coughing, I shifted into a defensive stance, ready for Shampoo's next attack.  
  
Everyone who was home had come into the room to see what the noise was all about by now. I ignored calls of "Akane, stop!" and "Ladies, this is NOT appropriate behavior in the house." At that moment, they were the last things I wanted to hear. I tried even harder to ignore Ranma.  
  
"Akane, don't do this to yourself!" he yelled. This was his fault in the first place! I didn't need an indecisive moron like him to tell me what to do, and I wasn't about to let Shampoo score another hit on me.  
  
That Chinese bitch placed her hands on her hips and laughed at me! "You are such a weak girl," she screeched, "that everybody is trying to stop you from getting hurt." She tilted her head back and laughed more. "Maybe you should follow their advice," she finished. Anger flowed through my body, my muscles tensed, and I grunted as I stopped the laughter immediately at its source with a roundhouse kick. The satisfaction of watching her fly back while botching an evasive flip was gratifying. Shampoo tried to use her hand as a springboard but landed at a bad angle. Her hand slipped out from under her and her wrist contorted at a strange angle. A loud cracking sound followed. I calmed down enough to allow Dad and Saotome-Ojisan to hold me by my arms in case I wanted to attack again.  
  
"Might want to watch out there, this 'weak girl' just knocked you down!" I watched with a dark grin as she stood and examined her wrist. Adrenaline surged through my body and I shook with excitement when Shampoo glared at me, her lavender eyes streaked with rage. A battle cry escaped her lips but before she was able to attack Ranma grabbed both of her arms and pinned them behind her back.  
  
"YOU!" Shampoo tried to lash out.  
  
"THIS is ENOUGH, ladies!" Saotome-Obasan stood in between us, directing a stern gaze to both of us. "This was a very plain display of stupidity and irresponsibility on BOTH of your parts, and I will not tolerate any more of it in my presence." Her eyes were wild and her demeanor was commanding. I felt my will being broken and bowed deeply in apology.  
  
"I'm sorry Sham--AAAAUGH!" I clutched my stomach, sinking to the floor. Shampoo was already on her way out, leaping over the outside wall.  
  
"I'm going to MAKE you sorry," she hissed before disappearing.  
  
"Akane!" Ranma rushed towards me and put a hand on my back. "Are you okay? What in the HELL made you hit her in the first place when it's a known fact that you can't take her in a fair fight?!"  
  
Instinctively I tried to yell back but ended up coughing out my breakfast on all fours. How could Ranma possibly scold me when it was his fault, I thought to myself. He should have pushed her away and beyond that, he shouldn't have let her hit me! What made things worse was that I was being scolded while Shampoo was the one who escaped, still standing. Using what strength I had remaining, I stumbled outside. Ranma didn't understand anything, and he still managed to scold me and make me feel idiotic. Collapsing against a wall, I sat down and brought my knees to my chest. Tears burned down my face, and when they dried the sun scalded my cheeks. Ranma called my name. I wanted to shrivel up and disappear as he approached me.  
  
"Akane, are you okay?" He asked that question when anyone could have told him the answer by looking at me. I didn't answer, and avoided making eye contact with him. Maybe I shouldn't have acted so hastily. Maybe I could have at least watched who I was hit. No! None of that would have been an issue if Ranma simply would have pushed Shampoo away. It was all Ranma's fault that I felt so ashamed; it was so stupid of me to let her get such a potent hit on me, and in front of Ranma and my family!  
  
Ranma draped an arm around my shoulders. I kept my head down for a few moments longer and then forced myself to look at him. His face was etched with concern. "One more time, Akane," he breathed. "How are you feeling?" I was melting fast under his nice-guy routine. Was it for real? Was he just trying to control me? The day I came home with new clothes he acted like this, too.  
  
"A... little." That didn't change the fact that I still felt weak. My stomach burned a bit. Rubbing my eyes, I sat up straight and exhaled loudly. "What kind of a martial artist needs to sucker punch their opponent"  
  
"That's what I was going to get at, Akane." Ranma squeezed my shoulder gently. I mentally begged him to stop; my heart was going to burst from my chest. Ranma's voice had never been so gentle and in the right situation it would have been plain sensual. "You shouldn't fight with her, she's the kind of person who would really hurt you without a second thought."  
  
"What?!" I scooted away from Ranma, scraping at the ground with my heels. "What am I, a toddler? I know that I'm not as great as you are, but that doesn't mean that I can't protect myself!" I was hurting and he STILL chose to be a jerk? Unbelievable! "I've been training for most of my life, you know! Maybe I'm not some psycho that's obsessed over Kenpo like you and the others, but I can still hold my own!"  
  
"Yeah, that's why you're sitting here hurt after one blow, is that right?" Ranma stood up just as a portion of the wall behind us shattered. Ranma leaped out of the way and Ryouga stepped through the rubble. Before Ryouga spoke, he studied me and glared back at Ranma. Ryouga stalked with purpose towards Ranma, cracking his knuckles.  
  
"Ranma! WHAT HAPPENED to Akane-san? Don't make me KILL you!" Tossing his backpack onto the ground, Ryouga leaped high in the air and lunged at Ranma. "What the hell is going ON??"  
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Author's Notes: (September 2002)  
More of my attempt to make this fanfic a little more decent. ^^; I've got quite a ways to go...  
  
(May 2003)  
Yes. It DID take me THAT many months to finally put this story online. ^^;;; 


	3. The Death Of Pchan

Solar Demise - or - Oblivion has Gained on Us  
by Pink  
  
Part Three - The Death of P-chan  
  
"If you don't tell me RIGHT NOW why Akane is hurt..." Ryouga leaped high into the air, throwing a punch at Ranma. Ranma back flipped to avoid it, visibly annoyed.  
  
"Shut up Ryouga!" Ranma leaped onto a wall, folding his arms. "This entire incident has NOTHING to do with you! Quit now before I really hurt you!" Ranma took a defensive stance and awaited Ryouga's attack intently.  
  
"I have a right to know about it, Ranma!" Ryouga growled. "Akane is one of the most important people in my life-ah-- she's one of my dearest friends and I have a right to worry about her! Because YOU live with her, I worry even MORE sometimes!" He glanced at me quickly and his voice softened. "Akane, will you please tell me what happened? I was passing by, I heard what Ranma said about you getting hurt." Ranma held his stance and watched carefully as Ryouga remained on the ground, looking at me.  
  
I shook my head. I wasn't exactly in a mood to speak. "It's nothing, Ryouga-kun. Really, I had a little... sparring session... and I got--"  
  
"--You got ROCKED, Akane. Shampoo hit you so hard you lost your breakfast!" Ranma shifted slightly as he yelled down to me.  
  
"WHAT???" Ryouga switched glances between Ranma and I, blinking in disbelief. Out of nowhere, Ryouga leaped high and dove at Ranma, who was still on the wall but caught off-guard. Ryouga's punch connected squarely with Ranma's head, sending him into the ground.  
  
"Ranma..." I stopped myself from rushing to his side. *That's right,* I thought to myself, *I'm still mad at the jerk! I don't want to talk to him at all!*  
  
The two continued their scuffle, destroying rocks, making craters in the ground, and demolishing portions of the outside wall around our home. Ryouga accented his punches with his usual insults: "You careless womanizer! You bastard!" At first it seemed like a typical fight between Ranma and Ryouga. As I watched further I noticed that there Ranma had a different look in his eyes. I watched quietly for a bit longer, until Ranma had managed to pin Ryouga's arms behind his back. It was almost as if Ranma looked... hurt? He pulled forcibly and curled his lips in a sneer, speaking sharply.  
  
"You had better LISTEN WELL, Ryouga."  
  
"And WHY should I listen to you? Akane's hurt, and you didn't protect her! You screwed up, Ranma!" Ranma appeared to flinch, and then stared straight into Ryouga's eyes.  
  
"Don't you give me that crap about protecting her the right way, Ryouga! I've done it over and over, and every time I've done the best I could!"  
  
"You can say that now since she'll be okay! If this were a different situation and Akane had... if Akane had been put in the hospital or died, would you still be spouting that same crap?! Would you shrug your shoulders and say, 'Oh well. I did the best I could, let's go home?'" Ryouga struggled until his arms were free.   
  
"What I've ALREADY DONE should be proof of what I say, dammit!" Ranma threw punches, Ryouga dodged. "YOU were there for half of those fights! Even someone as dense as you could see that I'd die fighting for her without even hesitating! Why don't you--"  
  
"You two, stop it!" I held my stomach as I yelled, because it was starting to burn. Ryouga's face paled a little but he seemed to be controlling his reaction. "Quit talking as if I'm out of hearing range! In fact, quit fighting over this stupid little thing all together because I'm very OBVIOUSLY alive!"  
  
"See what I mean?" Ranma shoved Ryouga to one side and folded his arms.  
  
Why did Ranma always have to be so rude? "Ryouga-kun, I'm so happy to have such a caring friend." I grabbed his arm and headed for the house.  
  
"Argh! this is so typical, you two, do you know that? Why do you always have to act as if I'm the jerk?"  
  
"Because you ARE the jerk!" I retorted. "You could have stopped Shampoo, just like you could have stopped a LOT of incidents from happening, but you never do! You just let those girls grab at you like you're a slab of meat!"  
  
Ranma's eyes flashed brightly with anger. "I don't believe you just said that, Akane." He breathed loudly and crossed his arms. "You're sitting here putting the blame on ME when you could have watched who you were attacking. You also seem to think you can tell Ryouga and I to quit with the violence, but I'll bet you don't have a problem using those mallets of yours! Maybe you're right, beating someone into the ground DOESN'T help. Look what's happened to you!"  
  
I didn't know what to say. Ranma's empty insults were one thing, but he really meant what he was saying. Inside, I wanted to agree with him. There was nothing I could even think to say in defense.   
  
"But... you always let those girls... RYOUGA understands what I mean! They do nothing but grab at you and.."  
  
"Shut UP, Akane."  
  
"..."  
  
A moment crawled by and Ryouga broke the silence. "Don't you talk to her like that, Ranma! How DARE you!" Ryouga balled his fists, but I pulled at his arm to hold him back."  
  
"It's best that you stay there with her, Ryouga, because if you attack me for telling the truth... I'll HURT you. And I'm not talking about those little scuffles that we usually have. I. Will. MURDER. You." I didn't notice how tightly I was clutching Ryouga's arm. It was safe to say that neither of us had ever heard such ice in Ranma's voice. "Both of you are perfect for each other. You won't even listen to the other side of the situation before jumping into things and acting high and mighty! You only believe whatever justifies your urge to beat up someone."  
  
I looked away from Ranma, down at my toes. "I don't need to be badmouthed right now, Ranma." Tugging on Ryouga's arm I led him away from Ranma. "Let's go, Ryouga, I don't think I want to be around Ranma right now." Ryouga staggered a bit and nodded in agreement.  
  
"I see. All right, Akane, that's fine. You don't seem to like hearing the truth, I get it." Ranma turned away. "Since you two are so alike, why not get engaged? Maybe since the Musabetsu Kakutou Ryu doesn't seem to have much of a future, your dad'll let you to get away with a wedding."  
  
"Ranma, that's below the belt--" I started to say.  
  
"Oh, like you never hit below the belt," Ranma hissed. "I think I've had enough."  
  
"What?!"  
  
"I think I'm sick of trading kisses for kicks, and I think I want what a NORMAL person would call, 'affection.'" Ranma started to walk towards the gates. "I'm TIRED, and I think it's better that we break off this engagement for REAL."  
  
"... ...what?"  
  
"You're awfully talkative, aren't you?" Was Ranma beginning to tremble? Shake with anger? "It's not like you love- it's not like we love each other. It's not like we act like a couple that's going to get married! Akane, get real." Ryouga was totally still as Ranma bowed to us before exiting. "Do me a favor, Akane. Make sure you live the rest of your life without any more regrets."   
  
"No regrets," I repeated softly, oblivious to the hand that Ryouga placed on my arm. "Ranma," I whispered before running to the gates. I tried to see which way Ranma went, but he was already out of sight. "Live the rest of my life..?"   
  
Ryouga pulled me into the house. "I... I can't say whether or not Ranma's coming back this time. But I bet he'll come back eventually, right? I mean... he lives here, doesn't he?"  
  
"Yeah," I answered. "He's just a bit mad. I bet he'll be back in time for dinner." I felt like crying. "Hey Ryouga, would you like to stay a while? At least for dinner, but maybe even... for a night or so? We can hang out and catch up." Hopefully Ryouga didn't notice how hard I was forcing a smile.  
  
=-=-=-=-=-=  
  
Ranma didn't come home for dinner. Ryouga's presence helped calm me down as he joked with everybody and talked about the lack of souvenirs to buy now that there weren't really places to shop. I don't know if my stomach was still reeling from the punch, or if it was just because the whole day was a big downer, but I didn't feel like eating much.  
  
After dinner, we all watched a little TV, hoping against another news report or science documentary. I was sick of hearing the details of our particular flavor of impending doom. The shortage of food in China, the power outage in Okinawa, or the riots in America were things I heard enough of. I headed towards my room. "Ryouga-kun, would you like to stay down here and watch TV?"  
  
Ryouga rose and walked towards me. "Actually, I'm not interested in the TV. Would you mind if I just hang out with you?"  
  
I smiled in gesture for Ryouga to follow me. "That's just what I was going to ask, otherwise." On the way upstairs, I tipped my head towards everyone else and said, "Be sure to let me know if anything INTERESTING comes on TV, okay guys?" I headed into my room with Ryouga in tow, and let him in. I gestured to the side of my bed and offered it to Ryouga as a seat.  
  
Ryouga grinned softly and sat. "Hey Akane, thanks for inviting me to stay." He began to bow deeply, but I stopped him.  
  
"Hey, that's not necessary, you're great company!" I opened my blinds a little to let some light in, while the sun was still up. I was oblivious to the fact that my arms were trembling.  
  
"How are you feeling, Akane?" Ryouga's voice broke the silence. "I don't necessarily mean your injury, by the way. Honestly, you don't look okay." He pat a spot on my bed for me to sit on, so I obliged him.  
  
"No, I'm fine." I wasn't a very good liar, and Ryouga was equally not good at being convinced.   
  
"Are... you worried about Ranma?"  
  
"No!" When I said this, I realized that I was shaking. "W-why should I be?"  
  
"You don't have to lie, Akane. It's ridiculously obvious to even me that there's a spark between you and Ranma even when you're fighting."  
  
I remained quiet and still for a while, trying to recall my last few encounters with Ranma. "...really?"  
  
"Yes." Ryouga paused briefly and stared down into his lap. His eyebrow curled and he stared until taking a breath and looking at me. "I think I need to tell you something, Akane. You will most likely want to kill me, and that's totally acceptable."  
  
"Hey, Ryouga, I don't think I could ever hate you. You're such a great friend and I can't think of a single thing that you've done to wrong me."  
  
"Yeah." The Prince of Depression didn't look convinced.  
  
"So, what did you want to tell me?"  
  
"If you think I've been paying attention to your relationship with Ranma for kicks, you've got the wrong idea."  
  
"...?"  
  
"The truth is... I've been in love with you almost ever since I met you. I notice how you and Ranma feel about each other because of that."  
  
What on earth did he say? In love with me? It was plausible, but the thought had never crossed my mind. After letting what he said sink in a little bit I tried to make sense of it. I always knew that Ryouga was a little protective of me, but never realized the reasoning behind it. Things began to make sense, and a million strange incidents suddenly seemed a bit clearer.  
  
I wondered if Ranma knew about this.  
  
"I almost knew you'd react like this."  
  
"Wha--?"  
  
Ryouga put his head in his hands, mussing up his hair. "You've been quiet for a VERY long time now."  
  
"Really?"  
  
Ryouga sighed and slowly got up until I stopped him. "Ryouga-kun, I DON'T hate you, not at all! I'm sorry, I was just really surprised.. especially surprised that I couldn't tell."   
  
"Why, did I make it that obvious?" Ryouga blushed a little.  
  
"Honestly, yes. What's sad is that I didn't even notice until you said it." I leaned back and stared at the ceiling. "Aren't things funny... so much proof, but we ignore the facts anyway. It's almost human nature to lie to ourselves sometimes, ne?" I looked at Ryouga who looked thoughtful.   
  
"Make it a little more obvious, why don't you?" Ryouga laughed. "You two are so very definitely in love."  
  
"Ah! No ah, I was talking about..." Great. I'd look more dignified if I started stuttering.  
  
"You don't have to say anything Akane, it's all right." Ryouga poked me on the nose. "Heh, you know... I always thought that I could never deal with hearing something like that."  
  
"But I didn't say anything--"  
  
"Oh, I think your actions spoke enough for you." I think I was blushing by now. "But now that I think about it some more, I'm so surprised that I can handle this. I almost want to laugh."  
  
I returned Ryouga's poke in the nose. "...and what changed your perspective?"  
  
"I guess it was the fact that your friendship still means the most to me."  
  
"You're KIDDING," I giggled. "No offense, but isn't that something that you'd hear out of a bad drama? You honestly treasure our friendship that mu-"  
  
"--I'm P-chan, Akane."  
  
"That muc-- WHAT?" I leaned forward so violently that I shot myself out of my seat. He was so abrupt! What? No, did he just say... WHAT?! Before I could muster a coherent thought, I found myself pounding him with a mallet.  
  
Ryouga peeled his face off of under my mallet. "I-I deservbbph tthppvat," he choked. He slipped off of the bed and onto the floor into a kneeling position. "I don't deserve to beg you to forgive me, so please allow me to apologize as sincerely as I can."  
  
Oh, did I ever want to flatten the holy hell out of him! I almost did a second time until I thought back to what Ranma said. Maybe I DID act a little too much before asking questions. If it's a problem that I recognized, then maybe it was time I did something. I reached for Ryouga's arm and prodded him to sit back down on the bed. "Eh, Ryouga-kun, don't worry about it for now. Why don't you just tell me about the whole thing? I'm a little curious about how it feels." Ryouga blinked at me, confused. "Well, I can't hide the fact that maybe I'm a little bit..."  
  
"...in a rage?"  
  
I slumped. "...I was going to say, 'miffed,' but I guess that also completes the sentence enough."  
  
"Ah..." Ryouga seemed a little confused.  
  
"Well, anyway I wanted to make the point that we're still friends."  
  
Ryouga grabbed both of my hands and bowed repeatedly. "Akane-san... I'm truly indebted to you!"  
  
"Ryouga-kun, it's fine..." Suddenly I felt calmer. It felt good to be able to control myself. "So, wanna tell me the story of P-chan?" I took a pillow off of my bed and shifted to a more comfortable position.  
  
Ryouga explained the first night we "met" and the situation that led him into my bedroom that night. As he spoke, I felt more of the anger I had directed to him fading away.  
  
"...and so, even with all of the secrets you've told me: about your dreams, your unfiltered thoughts, I came to love you even more, Akane-san." Ryouga sighed and crossed his feet. "You weren't behind any masks. You had insecurities like everyone, and you said them to me without any restraint in your feelings. It always made me feel as if life was never as depressing as I made it out to be."  
  
I stretched, exhaling deeply. For a few minutes after Ryouga stopped talking, we sat quietly. I wasn't sure what he was thinking or trying to do, but the silence gave me more time to absorb what I had just heard. I was able to realize something I'd never thought of. "I am SO sorry, Ryouga-san." Ryouga flinched when he heard this.  
  
"What do YOU have to apologize for, Akane-san? And... what's with the change in honorifics? 'Ryouga-kun' is fine!"  
  
"You know so much about me... not just my hopes and feelings, but also about my selfish side. The things I've said in front of you, ah, haven't always been pure of heart or kind and yet you still respect me, right? No, even more than that, right? I feel like I owe it to you to give you more respect." I directed my gaze out the window. "I also need to apologize to you. I'm sorry, I just can't love you in the same way. Not like..."  
  
"Heh. It's all right, Akane-san." Ryouga lay his hand on my shoulder. "'Not like' who?" He winked. "Make sure you answer to 'Ryouga-kun,' by the way."  
  
"Come on, I can't finish that sentence, it just kinda came out." I rest my head on his hand. "You know, Ryouga-kun, I'm still a bit peeved at you... What you did wasn't really honest."  
  
"...so just let me know if you never want to see me again--"  
  
"But I realize that if I were to get TOO angry I'd be destroying one of my most important friendships." I interrupted. "With only a few years left before the end, who's going to waste time with a grudge?" I smiled at Ryouga. "You're one of the few friends I have who I really care about."  
  
Ryouga's eyes shined in the light of the setting sun. "I'm honestly happy to hear that. Now I can leave without any worries."  
  
"You're leaving?"  
  
"Yeah," Ryouga sighed. "I always enjoy your company but there is someone I need to see."  
  
"Can you do a couple of things for me?" I stood to turn on the light overhead. "There's a couple of favors I'd like to ask of you."  
  
"Have at it," Ryouga answered.  
  
"First off," I said before taking a deep breath. "Do you think you could keep me company for a couple more days? I'd like to have someone around to hang out with. I've been feeling a little lonely lately."  
  
"I can do that."  
  
"The more important one is coming up." I waited for Ryouga to nod in response.  
  
"Please... don't be a stranger after you leave?"  
  
"!!! Of course not, Akane!"  
  
"I mean... oh God, I feel so corny for saying this!" I placed my hands on my cheeks and laughed at myself. Ryouga squeezed my shoulder.  
  
"Don't say that, Akane. Come on, what were you going to say?"  
  
I clenched my fists and forced then down to my lap. "This sounds really silly... but... when the world actually ends, Ryouga-kun. Could you..." My cheeks felt wet. I tried to turn my head away, and bury my face underneath my hair so that he wouldn't notice that I was crying. "Ryouga-kun, could you come see me? I, ah, when I die... I want to be around everyone who is dear to me--" I folded myself over my lap. "You can bring whoever you want, of course... if you want, you can bring your family. Even bring Akari-san?" I was sniffling by now. "I know it's a really selfish thing to ask..."   
  
At first, I was almost oblivious to the arms that draped across my back in a comforting hug. Part of me was surprised that Ryouga did something so bold, and part of me realized that it was because of this talk. Most of me simply knew that the hug itself was helping. "We're not going to make it this time," I hiccupped. "We're going to die..."  
  
In a non-hysterical mood, had I looked up I would have caught the flash of uncertainty that shined in Ryouga's eyes. He brushed the hair off of my sticky forehead and whispered, "It'll be okay, Akane-kun."  
  
A week later, Ryouga said goodbye, leaving me with a strong hug and a peck on the forehead before exiting the front gates.  
  
=-=-=--=-=  
  
We weren't dead yet. The morning returned. "Damn, it's hot," I grumbled routinely, forcing myself to roll out of bed and head for the closet. Today seemed especially hot. Sliding the closet door to one side, I ran a hand over some jackets nostalgically and pushed them away in search of a t-shirt. I spent a good five minutes debating as to whether or not I wanted to look fashionable today. I ended up not caring. "It's not like I have anyone to dress up for," I mumbled as I headed down the stairs. Before I made it halfway down the stairs, my mind wandered about Ranma. Suddenly I didn't feel so good. Before anyone noticed I was awake I returned back to my room, sank at my desk and lay my head across its cool surface. Did Ranma go to Ukyou? Shampoo? Maybe even Kodachi? I wanted to see him. I didn't want to see the look on any of those girls' face as I came crawling back to Ranma, though.  
  
If anything, I was certain that I wanted to at least get out of the house for once. It had been a while since I'd taken the time to visit any of my friends or even walked around just to see how the neighborhood beyond my window's view was turning out. I was feeling weaker than usual; I hadn't done much of anything on the physical side in a while and I was starting to waste away for it. I headed back downstairs and tried to rush towards the front door in hopes that nobody noticed me. Just as I was putting on my shoes to go out I felt a hand on my shoulder. I shrieked and jumped, noticing that the hand belonged to my dad. Damn.  
  
"Good morning Akane, how are you doing?" He held a cigarette in his hand, twirling it absent-mindedly.  
  
Shrinking before his smile, I tried to mirror his pleasant expression. "Fine 'Tou-san, I'm just going out for a little walk--"  
  
"Ah, do you mind if I join you--"  
  
"--alone. I'm sorry Otou-san, I just have a couple of things I want to think about."  
  
Almost too predictably, his eyes began to water. "I- I see, Akane... well, have a good time."  
  
Poor Daddy. I thought that by now I'd have built an immunity to his over-sensitivity and lack of emotional restraint, but when you love someone I guess you always care about them. Dad actually seemed to be pushing some feelings back (seeing as he didn't burst into tears yet). I hugged him reassuringly and gave him a genuine smile.  
  
"Don't worry, I just want to do some thinking first. We can take a walk together after this, all right?" He beamed and I felt better. "See you later!" I skipped out the door, feeling a little happy.  
  
"Have a good time!"  
  
=-=-=-=-=-=  
  
I knew it was getting late, but I didn't know what time it was. The sun began to sink, and I didn't even notice where I was walking. For once I was feeling hungry. My stomach had been growling for hours and I thought that I could ignore it. I felt a little winded and dizzy, so I sat. This wasn't good. I didn't compensate for the fact that I'd spent full days doing and eating absolutely nothing. When I studied my surroundings I noticed that I was sitting along the river that Ranma and I passed on the way to school every day. I almost didn't recognize it seeing as how tents were scattered along its shores. "I guess nobody will mind if I go sit by the river." I headed towards an empty area. My legs trembled under me as I sat, finally relaxing. I frowned at the river's condition. "This place used to be so beautiful." My mind wandered back to days when I would push Ranma into it. I closed my eyes in reverie but opened them violently when I felt someone's hand on my back. I only rest for a second but I'm surrounded by scummy-looking guys?!  
  
"Mind if we keep you company, Jou-chan?" One moved to put his arm around me. I scanned around, taking in my surroundings. People were watching from their tents but they looked intimidated. One of these guys had a bat and another had a knife. I could take these guys normally... but now? I prayed for enough adrenaline to beat the hell out of these losers. The man who put his arm around me received a punch in the face.  
  
"Oww!! What the hell?!"  
  
"Hey you bitch! Who do you think you are?!" The one with a baseball bat dove for me, big mistake on his part. I forced the bat out of his hand by breaking his wrist.   
  
*I need to get the guy with the knife.* I swatted the knife-wielder in the face and pulled his knife away with ease. Throwing the knife and bat into the river, I twirled around and stood in a defensive stance. Piece of cake...? My stomach started to burn again, and my legs were trembling even more. They did NOT want to stay up and I had just abused them. I looked to my right and noticed one of the men reaching into his pocket. Another knife? No, his hand was moving differently. It came back into view. He was holding a gun?! My fatigue was starting to catch up with me. *No! Not yet!* I screamed internally. If I were to attack the one with the gun, would someone else pull out one? I had to take that chance if I wanted to get out of this.  
  
I screamed as loud as I could, and charged for the gun. I twisted to one side as I grabbed for the man's arm and missed a shot that was probably intended for me. I grabbed his wrist and tried to break his arm, but I heard something clicking behind me.  
  
The guy who put his arm around me spoke. "You sit right there unless you want a hole in your head, you little bitch!"   
  
"Hey Bro... she broke my wrist! The bitch broke my wrist!!"  
  
"Oh, we'll make her pay us back for that." I was surrounded quickly and had my arms pulled behind me. A guy with a goatee retrieved a knife from his pocket and ran it down the front of my shirt, cutting it open.  
  
"Since we had to work so hard for you, we're going to take a little more time to enjoy ourselves." I was getting dizzy again. What the hell were these people going to do with me, and what were they going to do when they finished? Why weren't any of the people watching from afar trying to help? My eyes closed. I felt my shirt being ripped away and hands on my chest.  
  
"I'll... kill you..." I whispered. Suddenly the hands that were holding me down let go and I heard bodies dropping around me. I didn't have enough strength to stand; again I felt my legs collapsing underneath me but was I caught before I hit the ground. The arms felt familiar. I opened my eyes one last time and spotted a pigtail, and a shift in my glance caught sight of a torn, red Chinese shirt. "Ran... ma..?" I sighed and leaned contently into his body before I blacked out.  
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Author's Notes: (September/October 2002)  
This chapter bugged me for so long. Blech, I think this is a bit more believable than the previous version. ^^ If you're reading THIS part, chances are you've read the previous parts. Thank you for joining me this far! ^o^/ 


	4. Ready, Set, Run Away!

Solar Demise - or - Oblivion has Gained on Us  
by Pink  
  
Part Four - Ready, Set... Run Away!  
  
I think my body was retaliating because of the horrible things I did to it. My clothes hung loosely around my body as if I were caught in a hurricane. My limbs lay limp and I didn't have any initiative to move them. Sitting in the back corner of Ranma's tent, I watched Ranma hold a steaming cup of tea up to my lips. It didn't feel like it was me who was sipping; when Ranma wiped my mouth off with his thumbs I felt like I was watching him do this to a shell of myself.  
  
Ranma was an expert at saving me. Somehow, he knew I was here, and by some miracle of chance he got to me in time. Why did it happen so often? I stopped that train of thought after realizing that Ranma seemed to be staying in a tent for the moment. Where was this tent, and why did he have it? I opened my mouth to speak, trying not to sound hostile. "Ranma... shouldn't you be staying with Shampoo or Ukyou? Kodachi, even?"  
  
Ranma was squatting in front of me, his expression faded to neutral. His hands lightly held the paper cup I sipped from. I sighed a little admiring the contours of his slender fingers; how they draped around the cup. His fingernails were a little jagged; worn down naturally or bitten off, but still clean. My eyes wandered away from his hands and traveled up his arms, over the curves of his shoulders, along the contour of his neck, and stopping at his penetrating gaze. I blushed slightly and abruptly looked to one side. Ranma took in an alluring short breath as he parted his lips to speak. "I don't really HAVE to be anywhere, don't you think?" His reply was cautious; there was a little force behind his words. "Now... I'm not going to ask You why you aren't at home, Akane," I could feel the awkwardness as he mentioned my name. "...but what are you doing HERE? More importantly, how on earth did you get yourself into a situation like that when you could have easily taken those guys down?"  
  
My usual anger came to a slow boil in my chest. It was made unusual from the fact that I was mostly mad at myself. What on earth possessed me to ignore how bad I was really feeling? What would I have done, had it happened again? "I was just taking a walk."  
  
"I see." Ranma's tone was becoming familiar. He was about to scold me for doing something that he saw as stupid... again. "Then would you mind telling me exactly how long you were walking? Don't tell me you've been out since I left?!" Ranma was sitting cross-legged now, pouring more tea into my cup. Rubbing his forehead with one hand, he handed me the cup using the other.  
  
"Don't flatter yourself--"  
  
"I don't mean to be RUDE, Akane, but you look like crap. Your clothes, I can understand, but your hair is completely limp. You've got circles under your eyes, you look pale, and you--" Ranma raised a hand to my face, rubbing at my cheeks with his thumb. "Akane, in all the time I've known you, you've never let your face get dirty. Even if you were standing in the middle of a nuclear explosion, you'd worry about wiping it off... what's happened?" I trembled, maybe at the touch of his skin, or at how horribly I still felt, or a combination of both.  
  
"I'm surprised you noticed that." I sipped tea steadily and smiled a little. "Really though, there's nothing wrong. I felt a little lonely after Ryouga left so I wanted to go out for a little bit."  
  
My words were followed by awkward silence. Was it taboo to mention Ryouga? I could have sworn the air in the room dropped about 10 degrees.  
  
"Oh," Ranma stammered. "So, uh, how long did he stay, anyway?"  
  
"Ah..." I didn't know if I wanted to answer that. It didn't seem like I had a choice, though. "Oh, maybe a little over a week. Why?" WHY did I tack on the 'why?'  
  
"Er. Just curious. So, ah," Ranma sounded like he was trying not to sound angry. "Did you guys have a nice time?"  
  
"...sure." I scanned the tent for something to fixate on. My eyes ran back and forth over an irregular seam. "Lots of time to talk. He actually told me some really big things."  
  
Ranma raised an eyebrow, looking a little more interested. "Oh?"  
  
"Heh, he confessed his love to me."  
  
Ranma's eyebrow sank back down without fanfare. "Ah."  
  
I suddenly realized what he wanted to hear. Even though I felt physically sore and drained, the urge to cause a little trouble arose. "P-chan finally came back, too!" I tried my best to look giddy. Ranma's body language told me that he did, in fact, know about P-chan's true identity.  
  
"Heh, what a BIIIIIG surprise," Ranma spat.  
  
"Ryouga's so nice to P-chan, unlike someone I know. P-chan really seems to like Ryouga a lot, too!" I was holding back laughter, anxious to see how Ranma was going to react, but to Ranma it looked as if I was smiling at a memory. Ranma's eyes grew wild and I noticed that he was trying to stop himself from shaking. I decided to add a little more to Ranma's confusion. "P-chan liked Ryouga-kun so much that he wanted to sleep with HIM instead of me!" I tacked on a giggle. It looked like something in Ranma's head snapped.  
  
"Akane... I don't know if you noticed or not, but that P-chan was probably a fake." Ranma's eyes were practically glowing and it looked as if he was about to crush the hot water kettle.  
  
"What?! How could you know that, you weren't even there, right?"  
  
Ranma twitched. He was having more and more trouble keeping calm. "J-just TRUST me on this, Akane, I really think that the P-chan you saw was a fake."  
  
"..and why's that?" I blinked innocently.  
  
"Agh. It's because.. Well. He. Erm." Ranma cracked the handle on the kettle.   
  
"Just kidding." I smiled cautiously. "I know about everything, Ryouga-kun told me."  
  
"AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!" Ranma fell over, but sat up immediately and glared at me. "Thanks for the heart attack."  
  
"Eh heh heh, sorry, I wanted to see what you would do. I'm sorry, I just wanted to lighten the mood a little..."  
  
Ranma sat back up, smiling slightly. "All right, it's okay. Just threw me off. Want some more tea?"  
  
"No thanks, I'm fine. What do you want me to do with this cup?" I handed it to Ranma, and then lay down on my side, adjusting my hips a little bit.  
  
Ranma retrieved some antiseptic and bandages, and started to clean off some scratches on my hand. "Um, so..." Ranma rubbed my hand softly. I could feel my cheeks getting hotter and tried to keep calm. My skin stung, but Ranma's fingers were so gentle as they spread the medicine across my cuts. "When Ryouga told you he loved you, what did you say?"  
  
"Well," I was a little surprised that Ranma was curious. "I let him know that I wasn't really reciprocating those kind of feelings, actually..." Ranma's hands stopped but he didn't let go of me. "I, ah, pretty much said that I couldn't really feel that way about him... He's not like.."  
  
Ranma put his other hand on top of mine. "Ah." Ranma's hands tightened suddenly around mine, but he was still careful not to squeeze my scratches. "Akane, this is kindova silly question, but I'm going to ask anyway."  
  
"All right," I answered.  
  
"Would you consider me as a friend, Akane? Er, I guess you would have to consider what happened recently as a part of your answer, ne?" Ranma absentmindedly traced circles on my hand.  
  
"Well... I guess you could say that I wouldn't get so easily angry at everything you do if I didn't care about you." I sat up slowly. "I can't deny the fact that I care about you as a friend-- I wouldn't mind if you don't?"  
  
"Yeah... well everything with us is usually in a gray area. Ah, and yeah, it's kinda obvious that I care about you, huh? Er, in that mutual respect sorta way, of course." Ranma smiled shyly. "I guess I just wanted to be sure. I think I've been burned a bit too much lately."  
  
"I'm really sorry about what happened, Ranma. Can you forgive me for being stubborn?" Ranma's shy smile stretched a little bit as I bowed in apology.  
  
"I wasn't digging for any kind of apologies, Akane, it's okay. I'm sorry I was so cold." I gripped Ranma's hand quietly and we both remained silent for a bit. Everything he said previously didn't seem to hurt anymore. A smile of my own spread across my face.  
  
"Um," I whispered. "Don't take this the wrong way, okay?"  
  
"Hm?"  
  
Before I started to think about it, I hugged Ranma, sliding my arms around his waist and squeezing gently. I felt his body go rigid, so I let go quickly.   
  
"So," Ranma laughed, "I take it we're definitely friends." I smiled in reply. "Then, I guess I can talk to you about how my last week or so has been, eh? Get comfortable." Ranma handed his pillow over to me and adjusted his position.  
  
"All right. As you know, it started back when we got into that fight last week." I nodded. "Yeah, well I took a little walk. Didn't get into the same kind of trouble as you did, but I thought about my options. Figured that I didn't have to commit to a marriage and get whisked away to some strange place if I went with Ukyou."  
  
"...but that kind of thing wouldn't matter if you were in love--" I interrupted.  
  
"..." Ranma looked at me with a little bit of sadness. "...like I said. Ukyou seemed to be the best option."   
  
*Better keep my mouth shut for now,* I noted.  
  
"Ucchan still cooks okonomiyaki but instead of getting money, she trades it for things like drinking water and supplies. That kinda stuff.  
  
"So i come in, and she says the same old, 'hi Ranchan.' I helped her out with the restaurant a little. Maybe two nights later, she asks what's going on and I tell her about our fight and Ucchan starts getting all googly-eyed at me. Started going on about how she knew that we were gonna be together, blah blah blah." I couldn't help but await the end of this story with a little malicious glee.   
  
"And yeah... I let her hug me." Ranma's shoulders raised slightly as if he were bracing himself for a punch, and I tried my best to look unfazed and unconcerned. "So that night after we did a little bit of sparring we had to clean up the restaurant." I felt a little more jealous after hearing that. Few people sparred with Ranma and I was one of them. To have Ukyou butt into something like that made my heart sink a little bit, but I pushed those feelings down. Ranma wasn't with her now and I was about to hear why.  
  
"That night, she wants to sleep in the same bed as me. I figure it's okay, gotta see if I can handle a relationship like a man."   
  
*Do I really want to hear the rest of this?* I breathed sharply.  
  
"So... uh..." Ranma began to blush. "I got into her bed.. and she gets all giggly, but then she turned into a totally different person! She crawled in and started putting her hands all over me..."  
  
I wanted to start screaming. "Uh, Ranma," I replied a bit frustrated, "If this is going where I think it's going, are you going to get graphic?"  
  
"Er, sorry. All we really did as kiss. Er... even then, it was more like I sat there while she kissed me." Dear LORD, I bet that I was glowing with either a battle aura or just plain jealousy. "I pushed her off of me eventually because it just felt... wrong. I told her how I felt, and she got a little mad and kicked me out and started calling me a womanizer."  
  
"Only a little mad, but she kicked you out?" I looked at Ranma expectantly.   
  
Ranma sighed. "She dented a spatula on my head and tried to force me to sleep in the restaurant area. I got a little pissed off and just left."  
  
"Let me guess... she took pity and gave you this tent? No, you traded something for this tent?" I asked.  
  
"Eh heh heh, funny that you mentioned that... I kinda 'borrowed' it on the way out, actually." Ranma smiled awkwardly and put his hand behind his head. I laughed more than I should have.  
  
"So Ranma, if you left her place so early in the week, why didn't you come back?"  
  
"What, after the way I talked to you? I really felt like this time I'd screwed everything up; that I was really harsh on you." Ranma's shoulders sagged. "Look, I'm sorry for hurting you. Lots of times I'm mean to you and I don't even think to apologize since things had a habit of fixing themselves. Sorry."  
  
"Hey, no, I'm guilty of doing that too." I changed the subject before the conversation could get awkward. "Hey, Ranma?"  
  
"Hmm?" Ranma blinked.  
  
"Thanks for saving me." I curled up with his pillow and smiled.  
  
"Well, I think I owe you some gratitude, too. All this time you didn't even move to hit me like I though you would. I'm really surprised. You seem so different just because of that and it's only been like a week." Ranma twirled my empty tea cup on his finger.  
  
"What you said before you left really stuck, I guess."  
  
"Looks like we both had a pretty memorable time, eh?" Ranma flicked the empty cup to a corner of the tent.  
  
"Time to go home, ne?"  
  
"Hm. Nah, not yet."  
  
"Huh?" Why not?  
  
"Well, don't get me wrong, I feel like I can come home now, knowing that we're on good terms. I guess that now I've been out on the road it feels like old times. I wanna stay out a bit. Wander around..." Ranma started to put away the hot water kettle and tea leaves. "This time, without Pop though. I don't think I feel like being chased out of every town I visited... like old times." Ranma snickered.  
  
"Ahh." I frowned a bit. After what I went through I didn't want to just let him run off again. Who knows when I would see him again? An idea hit me. "Um, Ranma? You don't suppose.."  
  
"Eh?"  
  
"...that I could come with you?" Ranma didn't appear to react at all to my question. "Uh," I added, uncertainty apparent in my voice. "I promise I won't do something like force my cooking on you." Ranma blinked. "...and I'll do my best not to slow you down..."  
  
Ranma grinned, almost laughing. "Heh heh, Akane, I was just surprised that you wanted to go! Sure I don't mind. We'll have a little vacation or something!" Ranma's face looked thoughtful for a moment. "Your family's not gonna worry or anything, will they?"  
  
"If I'm with you, I sincerely doubt it."  
  
"Yeah, I guess you're right." Ranma turned around to get more blankets. "Hey, I'm tired and you need a little rest, you wanna turn in?"   
  
"Yeah," I answered. "Good idea."  
  
Shortly after, Ranma put out the lantern in the tent and went to sleep. I stayed up a little after Ranma did. I was excited about what was to come. The swish of the river sounded peaceful, once I was able to ignore the drunken screaming and crying babies. It almost sounded like rain... the soft, swishing lullaby reminded me of how well I slept on rainy nights.  
  
=-=-=-=-=-=  
  
"Akane..." I opened my eyes slowly, to a bright flash of light. I instinctively turned away. "Akane, get over here..." Ehh? I sat up abruptly, crashing into Ranma, who was leaning over me.  
  
"Aaah, I'm sorry! Didn't know you were right there!" I sat up as Ranma put a hand to his face.  
  
"That kinda hurt..." Ranma slouched, rubbing his chin.  
  
"I'm sorry, sorry, sorry," I frantically mumbled as I rubbed Ranma's chin gently. I watched Ranma's face flush. He flinched as if he were about to pull away on instinct. A moment later, he calmed down and a sly smile spread across his lips. Ranma slid his hand over mine and clutched it while moving it off of his face. Ranma's other hand started to slide up my arm. He moved closer. I watched dumbly as Ranma tipped his head gently and closed his eyes. Realization struck as I felt Ranma's exhale brush across my lips. Ranma was going to kiss me! I clutched his hand with both of mine and closed my eyes.  
  
"Akane," Ranma whispered. "Mmm, Akane..."   
  
I laughed softly. "Yes, Ranma?" I murmured sweetly, turning over on my pillow.   
  
...on my pillow?!  
  
"We've gotta get out of here, Akane." Ranma whispered a little more forcibly to me.  
  
"Aaa!" I sprung up, and Ranma barely dodged out of the way of a head butt. I cursed mentally. Damn dream!  
  
Ranma raised a finger to his lips. "Try not to make a lot of noise. Let's get out of here."  
  
"Why? What's going on?" I stretched my back and started folding my blanket.  
  
"In a few minutes, it's not gonna be safe for us to stay here." Ranma sighed, stuffing a toothbrush and a roll of toilet paper into his pack. "After what happened last night, people got a little scared and those guys we beat up threatened some of the folks around here if they didn't tell them where we were."  
  
"Wha?!" I held myself back from yelling. "Those guys never learn!"  
  
"I know," Ranma pulled the blanket off of me and pushed it into his pack, then zipped it shut. "I'm not saying the two of us can't take those guys again, but,"  
  
"Yeah, we shouldn't be thinking like that. It's just going to cause more trouble."  
  
"Exactly. Even if we did try to take them on, you can't block a bullet like you can a punch." Ranma's stare was urgent. "Well, are you ready?"  
  
Just as I opened my mouth we heard voices echoing outside. Ranma's eyes bulged and he handed me my shoes.  
  
"Hang on to these for now, and you can put them on later." Ranma threw on his pack, wrapped his arms around my waist, and vaulted out of the tent.  
  
A couple of voices could be heard in the distance. It would only take another second for us to totally lose them, thanks to Ranma's quick response. "Look, there he is what that little slut! Akira, hand me that clip..."  
  
"Crap! Let's get out of-- eh?" Ranma stopped dead, depositing me and the pack behind a wall. "Ranma! What in the hell are you doing?" Ranma didn't answer and headed back towards the river.  
  
"Promise me you'll stay here," Ranma growled.  
  
"Ranma! Let's just go! They could start shooting at innocent people!" I clutched at the backpack and watched Ranma charge at someone, possibly the one we heard.  
  
"You take that BACK, damn you!" My whole body shook from a rush of adrenaline. Ranma leaped high into the air to the sounds of gunshots. At that moment, my heart could have twisted into a knot and I wouldn't have noticed. More guns fired, and I watched terrified as Ranma dodged and pushed forward.  
  
"You bastards attacked her last night, and now you have the GUTS to call her a slut?!" With blinding speed Ranma slung his arm around the neck of a man with bleached hair and used him as a human shield. "Do you feel THIS?" Ranma tightened his arm and the man began to scream. "Listen up. I could do a little worse and snap your neck without a problem, but I'll let you go if you apologize. Right. Now." As long as Ranma held onto the man with bleached hair, nobody fired.  
  
"Ranma, what are you trying to prove, you moron?" I whispered, still shaking.  
  
"SAY IT." Ranma squeezed a little harder, and I watched his hostage squirm and scream.  
  
"I'm sorry!"  
  
Ranma's eyes grew wild. "You don't seem to understand the SEVERITY of your situation, SON! Say it loud enough for her to hear! And you're apologizing to an Akane, by the way!" The man tried to wriggle out of Ranma's grasp but ended up receiving a punch to the face for his efforts.  
  
"Akane," Choked the man. "I'm SORRY!"  
  
"Call her Akane-SAN! No, that's not enough. Make that Akane-SAMA!"  
  
"AKANE-SAMAAAA! Forgive me please!"  
  
"Ranma, BEHIND YOU!" I screamed before I realized what was going on. I didn't doubt that the rustling bush 4 meters away from me meant trouble, and when I saw a shotgun poke out, my suspicions became founded.  
  
Time slowed as the gun fired. A cloud of smoke burst and dissolved around the barrel of the shotgun. Ranma swung his feet back and up, pushing off of his hostage's head and using it to launch himself out of harm's way. I dove at the bush and started punching. I felt my fists connect with a body and didn't stop hitting, peppering my attack with kicks. Even when the body stopped moving I kept hitting, scared to death that Ranma would get shot. Ranma appeared next to me, ducking low to avoid being seen. He grabbed my arm while I grabbed his backpack and we ran a couple of blocks before stopping to rest in an alley.  
  
"Ranma, what the hell did you do that for? We were about to get away!" The intensity of the moment caught up with me again, and my knees wobbled as I sank to the ground. "Nobody could have caught us."  
  
"Look, I'm sorry... I just kinda flew off the handle when I heard him call you that." Ranma kneeled next to me and fanned me with a newspaper from the ground. "Sorry, I didn't even think to ask if you were still feeling okay, Akane."  
  
I didn't realize how much that little outburst did to me. My head felt a little light, now that I had time to think about it. "No, it's okay... that didn't even cross my mind." I tipped my head back and smiled up at the sky. A few clouds passed serenely overhead and I sighed a little, waiting for my body to calm down. "But that was really stupid..."  
  
Ranma exhaled and rest his forehead against the wall next to me. "I know, I'm sorry--"  
  
"...but you know, that was also really sweet of you." I didn't realize how confident I looked when I smiled. Absentmindedly, I brought my hand up to brush Ranma's face. "Thanks for saving me... twice, even."  
  
Ranma's face flushed and his smile was sweet. "Ah, do you need to rest a little more?"  
  
"No," I answered. "Let's go... er, were are we going?" I stood slowly, dusting off my shorts.  
  
"Hm... how about the ocean?" Ranma shouldered his backpack and started walking with a hand on my shoulder.  
  
"Great idea; the weather's perfect for it."  
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Author's Notes: (October 2002)  
All right, another one down! Even now that it's rewritten, I can't say much about it, but I'm glad I weeded out more crap from the original version. XD Ah hah hah hah, stay tuned for the next part. 


	5. Hindsight

Solar Demise - or - Oblivion has Gained on Us  
by Pink  
  
Part Five - Hindsight  
  
"Akane-chan? Is that you? Oh, let me get Otou-san!" Kasumi-oneechan put the phone down momentarily. There were sounds of rustling and clicking. I heard the faint thumps of feet across a floor, and then a crash. Thank Chance that the phones were still working.  
  
The phone's receiver blasted with loud sobbing. "Akane? Akane, where are you?" That was definitely my dad. Through his sobs I could hear the chatter of my sisters in the background. "It's been days! We were searching everywhere for you--"  
  
"Otou-san, I know--"  
  
"--and then I heard about some fights and shootings by the river, and I thought that something could have--" He erupted into more sobs. "I heard that two teenagers disappeared after that..." My dad was almost incoherent as he blubbered over the phone. "Were you with somebody, Akane? Are they okay?"  
  
I laughed softly. "Everything's fine. I'm with Ranma, actually, and he saved me--"  
  
"Did you hear that, Saotome-kun?" The conversation ended after that. Almost as soon as my father began to laugh ridiculously I heard a familiar panda chiming in. There was a loud thump (the receiver dropping, I assumed) and soon after Nabiki picked up the phone.  
  
"They're going to be like that for a while. Heh, so you and that Saotome boy kissed and made up somehow, eh Sis?"  
  
"Onee-chan!" I blushed a little.   
  
"You're so easy to set off, Sis. That's why I love ya." Nabiki paused awkwardly. "You two take care, though. Come back in one piece."  
  
"Love you guys..." My eyes began to water a little.  
  
"Hey now, are you going to start crying? Knock it off."  
  
"Sorry... I'm just being silly... I won't. Tell everyone I love them, okay?" Even though I was going to come back, the tears tried to come. Suddenly I wanted to end the conversation before I started to sob.  
  
"Akane? Why don't you and Ranma make me a niece or nephew while you're gone?" I didn't have to be there to know Nabiki was smirking.  
  
"ONEE-CHAN! GEEZ!" No need to explain why I was blushing.  
  
"Bye-bye, Akane." She hung up quickly. Good for her, I was about to chew her out. Part of me knew she only said that to stop me from crying, and I was thankful for that. I sat on a curb, waiting for Ranma. Not much sooner, I felt a hand on my head.  
  
"Hey." Ranma grinned. "I got us a little bit of drinking water, and this new tent. Looks like we've got a better place to sleep tonight. Ready to go?" Ranma blinked at me for a second, and brushed a tear off of my face. I started slightly, surprised that one had fallen. Without speaking, he tipped his head to one side and furrowed his eyebrows as if asking me what happened.  
  
I smiled brightly, gesturing towards the pay phone. Ranma's face relaxed in understanding. He tossed me the tent.  
  
"Did you ask how close we are?" I wrapped a strip of cloth around the bundled tent and threw it over my shoulder.  
  
"Only a couple of miles. Oh crap, I forgot to ask where we were..." Ranma began to turn back towards the house he came from, but I stopped him, pulling at his arm.  
  
"Never mind," I smiled. "We're only a couple of miles from an ocean, that's good enough for me."  
  
Ranma started walking. "Looks like you're really beginning to have some fun," He turned around, waiting for me to start walking. "Hmmm, two miles. I can do ONE in about 4 minutes, and if I do a little bit of leisurely jogging to let you catch up, we can probably get there in 15 minutes."  
  
"What are you saying?" I glared and began to walk a little faster. "I'll admit, you're a little more ...fit than I am, but to say that it takes me more than SEVEN MINUTES to do a mile..." My steps quickened. "You're just bullying me, now."  
  
"Fine, I'll shorten your time for you." Ranma took everything I was carrying, adding it to his backpack. "Can't bully the weak," Ranma smirked.  
  
I laughed, pulling a stop sign out of the sidewalk. "You think you can call me that and get away with it?" Ranma was trying to escape my wrath; not good! I playfully swatted at him, chasing him down a hill.  
  
"Never mind!" Ranma laughed, occasionally jumping to dodge. "Biiiiiiiii!" He stuck his tongue out, slowing down long enough for me to hit his pigtail.  
  
=-=-=-=-=-=  
  
It felt like months later. It didn't matter, we lost track of time anyway. It had been so long since I laid my eyes on the sign of our dojo. Entering the gates meant that my trip with Ranma was finally over. I felt as if I shed my older self the day I walked out of here.  
  
"You ready, Akane?" Ranma put his hand on my back. "Feels like it's been years, huh?"  
  
I sighed. "Hey, Ranma? I had a great time. It almost feels like you took me on a really long date! Heh heh..."  
  
Ranma clutched at the material on the back of my shirt. "Uh..."  
  
"You're as articulate as ever." I pulled myself away from him and pushed the gates open. As Ranma and I entered, the familiar smell of the pond and leaves from the trees was faint. We stopped, examining the elaborate rock garden that replaced what was once grass.  
  
"Wow, that looks pretty cool." Ranma started walking towards the house again. "Looks like watering the lawn wasn't a priority anymore..."  
  
"I can understand that. Man, this feels--"  
  
=-=-=-=-=-=  
  
"--weird," I panted, gripping desperately to my stop sign, "that... you... tricked me... into *gasp* ...running all this way... and... *gasp* the... sad... part... was... that... I..."  
  
"Fell. For. It." Ranma mimicked my panting.  
  
I cleared my throat. "Yeah, well." I brushed some sweat off of my forehead. "What annoys me is the fact that you're barely winded." Sighing, I casually tossed the sign a few yards behind me. A nearby group of people stared in fear and I suddenly remembered that I shouldn't do that outside of our neighborhood. Whoops!  
  
Ranma winked, looking particularly attractive (to my dismay). "Heh, we've gotta watch it." I watched his face as he stared out at the ocean. He looked intrigued at what he saw, so I looked in the same direction he was staring.  
  
Against a backdrop of glittering water, there were rows of aircraft carriers. I hadn't seen them before in person. They looked almost the same as the ones on television except for the fact that there were trees planted on a few. Whole families were entering some of the carriers, carrying boxes of what I assumed were their belongings.  
  
"Makes sense," I murmured.  
  
"Hm?" Ranma looked at me.  
  
"It makes sense. If it were to get too warm, do you think the North and South Pole would stay frozen? This country'd be underwater in no time." It felt unsettling to think about it.  
  
"We need to get us a couple of those, eh Akane?"   
  
"Akane-kun! Ranma!"  
  
We looked at each other and looked around, but I recognized that voice. I looked behind us and confirmed it with a familiar yellow bandana, tied tight and heading towards us... with Ryouga, of course. "Ryouga-kun!"  
  
"'Akane-KUN?' Since when did..." Ranma came off a little confused. "Wow, you were right about things being different, Akane."  
  
"What on earth are you doing here, Ryouga-kun?" I bounced up, tackling Ryouga with a hug.  
  
"Hey, don't flirt with me in front of your fiancée!" Ryouga laughed. "Wait, what are you guys doing outside of Tokyo?" Ryouga paused briefly and thought about what he just said. "We ARE outside of Tokyo, right?"  
  
"You moron, we're by the ocean." Ranma's tone was jovial, but cautious. He definitely sounded unsure as to what his relationship with Ryouga was now. "Nice to see you, man. It feels pretty good to meet up with a familiar face away from home." Ranma and Ryouga high-fived.  
  
"I was thinking that to myself," Ryouga laughed, "...even if it's a cross dresser like you." Ryouga watched carefully for Ranma's response. "Are you taking care of Akane-kun, or do I have to beat some manners into you?" Ryouga didn't hesitate to launch himself at Ranma, throwing a punch.  
  
"Heh, that buff chick can take care of herself, don't baby her." Ranma winked at me and returned Ryouga's attack.  
  
"This is going to take a while." I made my self comfortable by sitting on our backpack, losing myself in the gorgeous view, the scent of salt, and the caress of the breeze.  
  
=-=-=-=-=-=  
  
"Hey, anyone home?" Ranma opened the front door and dropped our things on the ground. We waited for a few seconds before realizing that nobody heard us. Maybe nobody was around? The house sounded empty and everyone's shoes were by the door. "Geez, what's going on?"  
  
I slid my feet into some slippers. "Hm, I'm a little disappointed that nobody's around to greet us, how anti-climactic."  
  
I followed Ranma and we searched from room to room in the house. We passed the kitchen, headed to the living room, up the stairs, and past everybody's bedrooms. Ranma sighed, sitting at the top of the stairs. I joined him, leaning my head on his shoulder. Ranma patted me on the head.  
  
"Man, I was hoping that my mom, or Kasumi'd be makin' something good in the kitchen. Guess we'll have to wait around until someone comes back."  
  
"Mmm." I pouted, for lack of anything better to do.  
  
=-=-=-=-=-=  
  
"I'll be back in a little while, okay?" Ranma waved back to Ryouga and I before taking off towards town. His job was to trade off some fish. Ranma insisted that he do the trading, claiming to be better at it than Ryouga or myself.  
  
"With my good looks and charm, I could definitely get some good stuff." Ranma said as he and Ryouga drew straws for the privilege. I began to realize that when two guys had the opportunity to be buddy-buddy, dumb things like this would happen.  
  
I waved goodbye along with Ryouga, and gazed at the dimming sky. I lay sideways on my blanket, sighing. "This night is going to be gorgeous, ne?"  
  
"Yep. Though, it's not really rare to have a night like this anymore... what month is it, anyway?"  
  
"Not sure! We're stuck in summer." I grinned. "Hey, you left to go see your family and Akari, right? Did you catch up with any of them?"  
  
"Ryouga shifted in his seat. "I was just with my parents, but lost them again. We ended up spending the night in the same forest but we wandered here together... well, it's been almost a day since I've seen them, so I think it'll be a while before I see them again."  
  
I idly swirled some sand with my finger. "What about Akari?"  
  
"Funny you mentioned that, the forest we stayed in was one behind her house! She cooked us dinner, actually!" Ryouga brought his knees up to his chest and rested his chin.  
  
"You miss her, don't you?"  
  
"Of course I do," Ryouga smirked at me and then stared out into the ocean. "I would say that it's easy for you... you can be with Ranma a lot more..."  
  
"Mmm," I began to protest.  
  
"--though I realize it's as annoying to be around someone you're not officially 'with,' ne? Did you tell him how you feel?"  
  
"NO WAY!" My face was getting hotter. "I can't bring myself to do it, Ryouga-kun!"  
  
"Akane-kun. Does Ranma even have the slightest clue that you...?" Ryouga stopped. "What the hell am I saying? I used to be in your shoes. Sorry."  
  
"No, that's okay. I DO wonder what's stopping me sometimes, but I try not to think about it. I guess I don't want to end up realizing that he doesn't lov--like me back." I folded my hands over my lap, admiring the ocean. The moonlight danced sharply across the waves, and I felt myself wanting to lay there and sleep. I think I was still speaking, and while I was conscious of the fact that it was about Ranma and I, the exact words weren't very important anymore. "How long do you think this will go on, Ryouga? I wake up every day, hoping that Ranma will realize it. I wish he could read my mind..."  
  
Ryouga was facing the ocean. "I get that."  
  
"I guess I sound crazy, but I see him every day and try to act normal. When his back is turned, though... I can't stop STARING at him. When we talk, or when I go off to do something I've always got one eye on him. I stare at him, from the corner of my eye, hoping that he's staring back at me. It's at the point where he'll talk to me and I won't hear a word he's saying because I'm busy fantasizing about kissing him!" I stopped, blushing. "...for example, of course." Ryouga laughed. "I sound crazy... maybe this whole end-of-the-world thing is setting my hormones on fire. It's not like I've ever had anyone together with me in THAT way. Er..." My face flushed in embarrassment. "Do I even make any sense anymore?"  
  
"Yeah, you do; don't worry. You want..." Ryouga looked thoughtful for a moment. "You want someone to know you inside and out. Almost like a best friend but more." I continued Ryouga's train of thought.  
  
"Exactly. A lover..." It was awkward for me to say that word. "Well, a boyfriend, or fiancée, husband, whatever. Someone you're in love with is so much closer to you, because they know everything about you! You could talk to them like you would any good friend, but they'd see other sides of you. You're almost a different person when you kiss someone... or ah... when you m-make love... it's a side of yourself that not even your parents see, you know?"  
  
"And you want that with Ranma."  
  
I hesitated before nodding. "I would do so much for him, Ryouga-kun, but I don't know for sure if he wants that kind of thing from me. Argh, I sound so stupid."  
  
"No way," Ryouga answered, "I know what you mean more than you realize, remember? I think I never thought about it in the same terms, though. You don't want to feel like you've been wasting your time if he doesn't feel that way about you. You don't want to experience any kind of rejection from him. I think that's what stopped me... from you for such a long time..."  
  
I was starting to feel a little guilty for pushing all of this onto Ryouga.  
  
"When I decided to finally tell you, Akane, I already decided a couple of things for myself. I thought about you and Akari, and the first thing I thought about was what it would be like to be with you..."  
  
"..." I guess it couldn't be helped. He indirectly said that he thought about what... THAT would be like with Akari and I...  
  
"...that sounds a little weird. Don't mallet me again, I realized I had no problem doing that kind of thing with either of you!" Ryouga braced himself for some violence, but I wasn't about to hit him. It's not like I didn't rub 'P-chan' into my chest a couple of times. "It finally hit me that if I wanted to be with you, I'd already ruined my chance. I lied to you about P-chan for too long, and every time Ranma rubbed it in my face, it was a reminder of that. You and I would never know each other like people in love should... I sometimes think about how Ranma would do things like insult your figure and your cooking, and I'd get pissed off at him for being an ass. When I think about it now... he always had the guts to tell you what he really thought."  
  
"Oi, Ryouga.. you saying my figure is that bad?" My eyebrow twitched.  
  
Ryouga jumped back. "What?!? No, NO! You're beautiful, Akane. I know Ranma thinks the same thing... it's hard to explain!"  
  
I grinned a little. "J-just playing with you! Anyway, I agree with a lot of things you said but never put them into the same perspective as you." Ryouga has stunned me before. Back when he was learning the bakusai tenketsu technique his tenacity even through ridiculous and demeaning pain impressed me. Of course, it's a no-brainer that I was stunned when he told me about P-chan and confessed his love to me in the same night. All of his seemingly irrational bouts of anger towards Ranma made perfect sense in hindsight. Thoughts spun through my head so quickly that they blurred.  
  
"Take this from a friend who's gone through the same thing. In the back of your mind, there's always going to be an instinct about how he feels about you, and most of the time it's right. Your instinct only gets messed up when your emotions get confused."  
  
"If Ranma asked me seriously, I'd do anything for him," I decided aloud.   
  
"Does that mean I'm going to get some help with these bags?"  
  
"EEEHHHH?!" Ryouga and I spun around, staring wildly at Ranma.  
  
=-=-=-=-=-=  
  
"Hmm." Ranma set our tent down at the foot of his futon. He turned back to our backpack, pulling out more things- clothes, a pot and ladle, matches, knives, among other things. After taking visual inventory of our things, Ranma yawned and laid on the futon. "It's weird, isn't it Akane?" Ranma looked up at me thoughtfully. "We get to sleep in our own beds."  
  
"It's going to be weird... I'm so used to hearing you snore," I giggled and stuck a tongue out at Ranma.  
  
"..and I'm so used to getting knocked in the head when you toss and turn." Ranma stuck his tongue out in return. "I might miss it," he snickered.  
  
"Yeah..."  
  
"So, I wonder where everyone is," Ranma said.  
  
"Judging from the cake in the kitchen, it seems like there was someone here..."  
  
Ranma bolted up as soon as I mentioned cake. "There's CAKE? Akane, do you know how long it's been since we've had dessert? Let's GO!"  
  
"Last time I got anything that resembled 'dessert,' it was in the form of YOU kicking my ass on a mountain! I don't think I like the word 'dessert' anymore." I pouted at the memory.  
  
"Good, that means I can have your portion, let's go!" Ranma leaped up and practically rolled down the stairs.   
  
"Wait," I called after Ranma. "What if it's not for us, you dolt?" Geez. I got up to run after him. "Ranma," I called when I caught up to him. "We shouldn't eat it without asking someone!"  
  
"What, did you lose your courage up on that mountain?" Ranma searched madly for the cake. I smirked as he looked inside the refrigerator (how could I have noticed something INSIDE the refrigerator?) and in the surrounding area. Ranma sighed and spun around to confront me. "You're not lying about the cake, are you?"  
  
"It's right--" I blinked. There was a cake sitting on the kitchen counter! Was I seeing things? I didn't see a cake anywhere now.  
  
"Cute." Ranma muttered, turning back to the refrigerator for something else.  
  
"I saw one, though..."  
  
"That was Ranma and Akane, all right." Nabiki, accompanied by the rest of our family, stood at the kitchen door staring.  
  
"Ranma! Akaneeee, I'm so glad you're back!" Dad. He broke past the crowded doorway, diving at me for a hug. "Akane, let me take a look at you..."  
  
Kasumi headed in afterwards, rushing to adjust my clothing. "Akane, all of this is filthy, let's start up a bath..."  
  
"Are you two at the point where you can SHARE a bath?" Nabiki said, half-teasing.  
  
I blushed, just as she expected, and Ranma chimed in while munching down a sweet bean cake.   
  
"Hey, sounds like fun, eh Akane?" He threw an arm around me, winking. It was time to get back at Nabiki!  
  
I put my hand on my stomach and cuddled up to Ranma, watching the entire family gape. Ranma and I headed towards the bathroom and I added, "Be gentle with me this time, Ranma! You might hurt our little one!" Ranma nearly tripped, and our families started screaming. Marvelous. Once we reached the bathroom I pushed Ranma out into the hallway. "JUST KIDDING!" I screeched before closing the door in front of a stunned Ranma.  
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Author's Notes: (October/November 2002)  
For those of you who are wondering what happens at the end of that flashback, it is covered in part 5a. When I originally created this story, I wrote a series of side stories just for fun. It was partly for a break from the main story, but also as a supplement to what happens between Ranma and Akane. This is stuff that I think shouldn't be abridged to fit into one chapter.  
  
As always, thanks for reading! Thanks for the encouraging email! Thanks for sliced bread (what? ^^;)!   
  
(May 2003:)   
Mmm, I never anticipated that this story would be posted to fanfiction.net, but what's going to happen with the side stories is that I will post them as a seperate fic. You can get the link off of my profile page once I post them. @_@ 


	6. A Blank Slate

Solar Demise - or - Oblivion has Gained on Us  
by Pink  
  
Part Six - A Blank Slate  
  
It felt like ages since I bathed alone; I almost forgot how relaxing it was. I made a point this morning to wake up earlier than everyone else, just so I couldn't be disturbed. Water was scarce, so we were only allowed to bathe once every two days and reuse some of the bath water. Today it was the girls' turn to bathe first.  
  
I sighed happily, sinking into the bath tub. While waiting for my body to adjust to the water temperature I took a good look at it. Muscles were in places where I didn't remember there were any. My skin had a beautiful tan from the time we spent outside, giving my skin color a regal flavor. Giggling slightly, I tipped my head back. "I'm a babe!" I murmured, hoping that nobody would walk in. I gazed at the ceiling, studying the cracks and dormant ceiling fan overhead. Ranma's voice echoed in the hallway.  
  
I ducked low into the bath, worried that he was going to walk in. He stayed out, and I caught part of what he was saying. "Hey, Hiroshi! It's been way too long, what are you up to these days?"  
  
Hiroshi-kun? I smiled, leaping out of the tub. I shoved the bathroom door aside, throwing a towel around myself ad heading out to see him. "Hiroshi-kun!" I called as I reached him and Ranma sitting at the dinner table. "Wow, is that really you?"  
  
"Yeah, Aka--- ak-aka-akane..." Hiroshi stared at me incredulously, jaw agape.  
  
"HEY!" Ranma sighed, exasperated. "Could you FIND a smaller towel?" Ranma turned his head away to punctuate what he said, and turned back to glare at Hiroshi. "And you, there. Would you mind not gawking?"  
  
"Hey, sorry man." Hiroshi winked at me. "Akane's always looked good, but I don't remember her looking STUNNING, heh heh."  
  
I blushed, retreating into the bathroom for some actual clothes. After putting on the t-shirt and shorts I wore to bed, I ran back out to talk with Hiroshi and Ranma.  
  
"...and Sayuri's back with her family in Kyoto."  
  
"Hm," Ranma blinked. "Looks like we may not see her again... oh hey, Akane."  
  
"Yo." I bowed slightly in Hiroshi's direction. "Sorry about a few minutes ago." I laughed a little as Hiroshi blushed.  
  
"Believe me Akane, you have absolutely nothing to apologize for!" Hiroshi noticed Ranma's glares and rephrased himself. "Er... ITakeThatBackAkaneStopBeingSexyLikeThat..."  
  
"Sexy?" A vein pulsed on Ranma's forehead.  
  
"Sexy!" I squealed. I hugged Hiroshi without thinking about it. "SOMEone thinks I'm sexy! You wonderful man..."  
  
"Ack! Don't kill me Ranma, she did it of her own free will!" Hiroshi gulped pointedly.  
  
We collapsed into laughter. I calmed down a little, collecting myself. "So what brings you here, Hiroshi? Taking a walk?"  
  
"Well, the two of you, really. I heard you guys were back in town and, ah, a little cozy with each other. Wanted to see it for myself."  
  
"Cozy?" Ranma and I repeated.  
  
"People noticed we were gone?" I mused, looking at Ranma in bewilderment.  
  
"Well, when things start getting quiet after a couple of weeks... especially in THIS neighborhood, people started getting curious." Hiroshi scratched his head. "That daily, 'Ranma no baka!" or 'Ranma, DIE!' or even, 'Ranma! I love you!' kinda grows on you."  
  
Ranma put his face in his hands. "...it grows on YOU, but I don't think I missed it."  
  
"Ranma! I love you!"  
  
It was pretty entertaining to watch Ranma jump and look wildly around the room. I continued screeching. "Oh, Ranma, you're so COOL! Let's get married and have LOTS of kids..."  
  
"That's not funny." Interestingly enough, Ranma didn't think that was funny! Hiroshi covered his mouth while trying not to laugh, and Ranma's face lit up.  
  
"Hey, where's Daisuke?"  
  
I gasped. "Yeah, I didn't even think about that. You guys are practically joined at the hip!"  
  
Hiroshi was strangely silent. His eyes shifted between Ranma and I uncomfortably. "Feel like going to see him?"  
  
=-=-=-=-=-=  
  
"I thought Daisuke's house was the other way," I said after we started walking.  
  
"Did they move?" Ranma asked, walking behind Hiroshi and I.  
  
"...yeah."  
  
Just walking through the neighborhood really showed me how long Ranma and I were gone. I spent years walking down these streets, but despite this fact I was barely able to recognize where we were going. Walls and certain buildings that I used as landmarks were defaced or just gone. We reached a street that I wasn't familiar with anymore. Just as I opened my mouth to ask where we were, we were facing a familiar clock tower. "Furinkan High School?!"  
  
"What on earth..." Ranma started to say while Hiroshi pushed the school gates open. They creaked painfully and clanged messily when they swung back against the wall. I was stunned as we entered. The school looked as if had decayed. Windows were either broken or boarded up. Pieces of old school furniture were scattered across the entrance to the school building, and graffiti covered about half of the school grounds. Hiroshi led Ranma and I around the back of the building to the baseball field.  
  
The sight will always be etched in my mind. Crude gravestones were lined across disheveled school grounds as far as one could see. Occasionally, some had flowers or burned incense with them. My chest felt heavy when I realized why we were here. I clutched a balled fist to my chest and grabbed Ranma's shirt with my free hand. "Oh no," I whispered.  
  
Hiroshi stopped well into the middle of the field at one of the smaller stones. It was almost square-shaped; placed neatly into the ground. A lei made of white flowers (that had long since died) had been left above the stone. I let go of Ranma and kneeled at the stone, saying a quick prayer.  
  
"What happened?" Ranma breathed.  
  
"I take it you guys didn't come across any 'sending' companies while you were gone."  
  
"What's that?" Ranma put a hand on my shoulder, squeezing me. My breathing was ragged.  
  
"While you guys were gone, someone came up with the GREAT idea of capitalizing on the end of the world. I guess I can't say I'm surprised about that part, but I think this is pretty disgusting." Hiroshi held a hand to his face, shaking his head. "Families who don't want to see the end of the world... who can't handle the idea of it get together for one last party right before they're 'sent.' You agree to give the company your leftover supplies like water, bathing soap, lotion, et cetera..."   
  
The corners of my mouth curled down; in fact my entire face contorted to an expression of disgust. Hiroshi wiped tears off of his face with balled fists.  
  
"Families can, uh, throw a party if they want... I was there." Eventually Hiroshi stopped trying to wipe his eyes. "Daisuke didn't want to go through with it, but he did to make his family happy. He wanted me to tell you guys... not to miss him..."  
  
"What?!" My chest felt heavy, and I was shuddering and sobbing. Looking back at Ranma and Hiroshi, I could tell that neither had much to say. I walked up to Hiroshi and kissed him on the forehead, trying to wipe his tears off.  
  
"Shit. What the hell kind of idiot wants to throw their life away, just like that?" Ranma mussed his hair around in frustration.  
  
"Obviously, all of these people." Hiroshi gazed onward at the other headstones. "One of the school administrators auctioned off the school grounds to NerimaSend-- that's the local company here-- because the cemeteries in this surrounding area were full. Daisuke's family shrine is in Nagano, but NerimaSend doesn't handle transportation of the remains." He bent over Daisuke's grave to touch the lei. Fingering it gingerly, he chuckled. "You guys wouldn't happen to know where this is from, would you?"  
  
Ranma and I exchanged glances and I shook my head.  
  
"Honeymoon island. Back when we took that school trip with Kochou Kunou to that place in Hawaii. Remember now?"  
  
"Oh GOD." I groaned. "The island where all of you guys went nuts and tried to act like you were ALL newly-married to us girls?" If memory served me correctly, I planted a foot in Daisuke's face back then.  
  
"Heh, that's the place. Well, after the trip, we made a promise to go back to Hawaii..."  
  
"The same place?" Ranma interrupted.  
  
"No!" Hiroshi laughed a little. "One of the bigger islands there. We wanted to go after graduation and take a REAL vacation. I guess this puts a damper on things, huh?"  
  
I sighed, leaning on Ranma's shoulder. Moving my hand over his, I looked at Ranma, and then over to Hiroshi. "I think we've seen enough for today. Let's get out of here."  
  
=-=-=-=-=-=  
  
Ranma and I walked Hiroshi to his house, and continued our trek home in near-silence. For me, dealing with an unexpected death was nothing but a revisited experience, but the in this case it was closer to suicide. The idea felt eerie. As Ranma and I walked, I wondered to myself about the kind of nerve one would need to profit off of something like this.  
  
I let a short sob escape my lips and took Ranma's hand, squeezing it. Without looking back Ranma realized that I needed a little bit of comfort and squeezed my hand back in response. Together we reached the front gates of our home and pushed them open.  
  
"So the rumors ARE true. Welcome home; aren't YOU the picture of the happy couple?"  
  
"Ranma. I've let you play with her long enough, but it's time to get serious."  
  
Of course, the two people whom I wanted to see the least were waiting in my yard. Ukyou and Shampoo leaned casually against the wall and dojo respectively, waiting for their prey. Before I realized what they were going to try, they leaped and Ranma and I in an attack. Ukyou lunged at me, trying to strike my face with the largest of her spatulas. My time wandering with Ranma paid off; while we were gone Ranma trained me so that he could have 'a decent sparring partner.' Concentrating my focus into my right hand I rocketed a fist through the wide part of her spatula, trying to hit her in the process. Ukyou leaped back startled, squealing as her severed spatula fell to the ground.  
  
Ukyou moved further back, flinging smaller spatulas in my direction. In the process of jumping out of the way I flipped and landed on my left hand, grabbing some stones. Tucking my elbows tightly against my body I arched my back and landed quickly on my feet. Before my feet touched the ground I threw the stones to knock Ukyou's spatulas out of the air. Ukyou lunged for a punch, now out of things to throw. Her movements were so obvious that I easily ducked my head to the side to evade, while bringing my leg straight up to strike under her chin. The ball of my foot connected perfectly with her jaw, causing her to spiral into the ground.  
  
Before she could react to the fall, I dove at Ukyou, pinning her arms down under the weight of my handstand. My feet wavered a little about me, helping me keep my balance. I held that pose, burrowing into Ukyou's stare with my eyes. It didn't take much thought to figure out that my change in fighting ability threw her off. Glancing over at Ranma, I noticed that he had easily put Shampoo out of commission. I turned back to Ukyou. Glaring sternly at Ukyou I muttered, "Give me one reason why I shouldn't crush your face in right now."  
  
She sized me up for a second and smiled back at my glare. "No," she said before spitting in my face. I tightened my grip on Ukyou's arms before pushing off and swinging my feet down in a swift kick. Adjusting my hips slightly, my foot crashed sharply into the ground adjacent to her head. The dirt below clouded around her face. I stepped away from Ukyou, joining Ranma who let go of Shampoo.  
  
"Next time I won't miss," I smirked as I walked away. When I moved to wipe the spit off of my face, I realized how my arm was shaking. My heart raced and pounded vibrantly. Fighting Ranma for practice felt different than fighting someone whose style I wasn't as familiar with, and to beat them was exciting. Before Ranma showed up I was used to beating people in combat, but I discovered how elated I felt to win over someone who was difficult to fight. Beating someone who used to be able to beat me gave an unexpected rush.  
  
"You okay, Akane?" Ranma seemed to be eyeing me for injuries.  
  
"Just fine." I smiled back and stood a bit closer to him. Once I looked back at Ukyou and Shampoo, my smile dropped.  
  
"All right you two, what the hell was that all about?" Ranma asked before I could, but was kinder about it.  
  
"What the hell are you guys trying to pull?" I added.  
  
Ukyou rolled her eyes, and Shampoo brought a hand to her face. "Idiot! There's only one thing we're after." Shampoo's look was as piercing as her tone. "In case you two haven't noticed, we don't have much time left, so I would like to stop playing around and get what I came to this country for."  
  
"Naturally I don't plan on losing to Shampoo, we both agree that you're the biggest threat, Akane. Your fighting skills may have improved, but you're just as stupid as ever," Ukyou chimed in.  
  
"You called her stupid, but you two are missing the obvious, here." Ranma spoke with quiet force. I knew that this "calm" anger was nothing to take lightly; it meant that he was holding back more than usual. "Where do you two even GET the idea that I'll love either one of you for beating up Akane? In case you don't remember, I have a habit of keeping Akane safe. Anyone with half a brain can realize that I do it because I DON'T WANT HER HURT." Ranma's louder tone of voice made even me a little afraid. "STAY OUT OF MY--"  
  
Ukyou gasped.  
  
I blinked. As I looked up, I realized that Shampoo was blow-drying Ranma's hair. Realization slowly built and hit potently. "Aaaaa!" I gasped. Ukyou raised an eyebrow, looking confused. "You didn't just--"  
  
"Of course I did. Ranma was able to get around it, but I don't believe you're smart enough to break it. He's not going to remember either of you." Shampoo smiled coyly and waved goodbye to Ukyou and I before making her exit.  
  
I ran up to Ranma who lay unconscious. Ukyou cautiously approached us. "What was she babbling about?"  
  
"That's right," I said. "You weren't even here the last time she tried this."  
  
"What, washing his hair?"  
  
"No, she did this to me last time. It made me forget who Ranma was."  
  
"WHAT?" Ukyou turned back towards the direction Shampoo left in and turned back to look at Ranma. "Well, there's a cure, right? You obviously got better."  
  
"Yeah, I did." I explained what I could remember of the entire incident.  
  
"Hm, that sounds easy enough. We'll just find something to trigger his memory." Ukyou started to head for the gates. "Geez Akane, to think you'd be worried about this."  
  
"I guess you had to be there," I muttered, propping Ranma up on my shoulders.  
  
"Though... if he didn't remember, it'd be like starting over, you know. If he forgets all about us, perhaps he's going to have to meet his CUTE fiancée, all over again." Ukyou opened one side of the gate. "...as a GIRL, this time." Ukyou left, and the gates slammed unceremoniously behind her.  
  
I leaned my head towards Ranma's as I dragged him inside. "Bitch."  
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Author's Notes: (December 2002)  
In case you didn't remember, Hiroshi (the guy with the wavy hair) and Daisuke (with the straight hair) are Ranma's friends at school who are always in the background and who are around to deliver a smart-ass punch line half the time. ^_~  
  
In the original author's notes for this chapter I mentioned the fate of a happy ending for this story. Guess what? I still haven't figured out which way to end this! *cough* As always, thanks for reading! 


	7. Back to Square Negative 1

Solar Demise - or - Oblivion has Gained on Us  
by Pink  
  
Part Seven - Back to Square -1  
  
My face gets hot when I'm flustered. Fussing. Frustrated. When I get this way I have to lash out in order to feel better. My lashing out for the day resulted in a flying pillow and a broken mug on the floor.  
  
It. Was. Hot.  
  
No, that's an understatement. I woke up in the flaming pits of hell (there, much more accurate!). I sat up, frustrated and sweaty, hurdling pillows in several directions.  
  
"A bath, a bath, a bath," my mind repeated to me. If anything could cool me down, it would be a bath. I assumed from the position of the sun in the sky and the intensity of the heat that it was well after noon. It was a Thursday, so the men got first dibs on the bathwater. Everyone would be finished bathing at this time of day. My angry disposition was about to be lifted! I headed to the bathroom, pushing the door to the side and ecstatically pulled my clothes off. Sighing happily as I grabbed a towel, I entered the actual bathing room and slammed the door loudly to one side. I blushed immediately after.  
  
"Sorry!" I gasped. Ranma was starting to get out of the bath as I entered the room. Upon noticing my presence he turned his head in my direction and stared at me, confused.  
  
"Um... sorry Miss, are you a guest here?" Ranma's beet red face poked up from behind the side of the tub as he ducked back down into the water. Remembering that I too was naked, I wrapped my body as best as I could with the towel in my hand. I headed towards the bath tub.  
  
*What am I doing?* I sat at the edge of the tub close to Ranma and dipped my feet in the water, much to his shock. I gave the cutest smile I could muster and splashed a little, trying to hide the fact that I was trembling. My actions were on a whim; I was acting before thinking. I wasn't quite sure what to do with this situation. Reintroduce myself? Sure, that sounded good for now.  
  
"I'm Akane. Nice to meet you." In the same fashion as when I first met Ranma for real, I bowed, smiling.  
  
"Ah... i-is that so?" Ranma bowed his head in salutation, still blushing, but smiling slightly. I wanted to throw myself at him, and punch him into the sky for forgetting me. "I'm Ranma. Well, I should probably let you have a turn at the bath since I'm finished anyway. Excuse me..." I wanted to make a lasting impression. I wanted to live with no regrets, after all. As Ranma got up, I thought fast and stood quickly.  
  
"Thank you! Well, it was nice to meet you-ooouuuUUUU!" I bowed 'haphazardly,' pushing my leg out from under me so that I would slip. My hands shot out to the sides and I pretended to lose my balance, and landed into Ranma. He slipped back into the tub with me in tow. Being the gentleman that he was (even though he would never admit it), he tried to break my fall. *YESS!* Just as I planned, I lay on top of Ranma in the water. His stunned face reddened, and I felt the quickening beats of his heart. I was a bit embarassed when I realized that I wasn't pushed up against my towel, I was pushed up against Ranma's bare skin. I must have dropped the towel when I fell. My mind flipped through the possibilities of handling this situation, but my mind blanked when trying to decide what to do next. Another darker part of my mind thought it was extremely sexy to be close to him like this.  
  
"You okay?" Ranma gulped and faced away from me to be polite. I picked myself up off of him and sunk into the water to hide myself. I wanted Ranma to fall in love with me, but I wasn't about to whore myself out to him.  
  
"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry, that was extremely clumsy of me! I should be asking if you're okay." Ranma nodded. "Thank you... I noticed that you tried to break my fall... that's really sweet of you."  
  
"No, it was nothing!" Ranma kept eye contact with me as he got up and wrapped my wet towel around his waist. "I happened to notice that you seem to know how to fall properly, though... I could tell in the way that you arched your back."  
  
My eyes widened.  
  
"...but I'm not one to allow a girl to fall like that." He winked at me and headed for the door. "You move like a martial artist. Would you mind sparring a bit before your bath?"  
  
That was close. "...the way I arched my back? I was right in front of you. The only way you'd notice something like that is if you were... staring... at... my..." I blushed for real.  
  
Ranma's face flushed back to beet red. "AH?! I wasn't looking on purpose! Er, I mean, that's all I could see... no... uh... it looked great?" Ranma's face twisted to uncertainty. "I promise you, I'm not some kind of pervert!"  
  
This was an opportunity to take this in any direction I wanted. "Of course not," I purred. I tried looking oblivious while sliding a finger suggestively into my mouth. Ranma's blush stayed potent. "But, you got to rub against something that would have otherwise been left untouched until marriage. I think I'm going to have to meet you in the dojo."  
  
Ranma smirked a little. "Looks like it, but this time if you fall," he winked. "It'll be because I made you." He shut the door behind him and got dressed.  
  
Too bad he didn't forget how to be cocky. "Ranma no baka!" I yelled. His silhouette faltered.  
  
=-=-=-=-=-=  
  
As I stepped into the dojo I finished tying my gi. "Just a short match, all right? I really need to get into the bath."  
  
"Interesting, you don't look all that dirty to me." Ranma bowed slightly and waited for me to take a fighting stance. "But I can understand how much better you'll feel after a bath. Ready?"  
  
"Sure." I tensed. Ranma molded me into a sparring partner that was at the very least, somewhat of a challenge. Months of fighting Ranma didn't measure up to his lifetime of experience, though. *That doesn't mean I haven't surprised him a couple times.* I may not have defeated Ranma, but there were times during my training when I nearly got the best of him. For once, I had a small advantage as I knew what to expect in a fight with Ranma. "Let's do it." I leaped as high into the air as I could, kicking sharply towards Ranma's face. Of course, he moved forward in order to strike me from behind when I landed, but things wouldn't turn out that way. I landed, dropping low and sweeping my leg under Ranma. he barely dodged, and I caught the surprised look on his face as he leaped away. There was no pause between his landing and his launching himself at me. "Damn him for being so fast!" I hissed. I barely leaped back, swinging my legs back and high into the air so that I could land on both hands. I pivoted on my palms, doing a split in an effort to swipe Ranma in the back before he could turn around. Ranma dodged, using his legs to push my hands out from under me.  
  
In a delayed attempt to get away, I tried moving one arm out of the way. That was a big mistake. Ranma's foot continued to move and collided with my face. Feeling the pain instantly, I reflexively brought my arms to my face, forcing the remaining weight of my body to crash down on my head. To put things lightly, it hurt.  
  
"SORRY!" Ranma was instantly at my side, flailing. "I, uh.. usually don't go all out on girls, but I think... when I was fighting you I kinda got carried away." Ranma covered his mouth to stop himself from rambling. "It feels so natural sparring with you, Akane! I'm, uh, really surprised. You're much better than any girl I've fought before..."  
  
No matter how good I was, my face still stung. "You know, you're amazing," I said rubbing my face. "You fight like you've trained all your life." Hopefully, those words would make Ranma raise an eyebrow.  
  
"...I have, actually. Hey." Ranma lowered his gaze and began to twiddle his thumbs. "Can we do that again some time? That was really fun." He examined my face. "Aw, man. I'm really sorry for that kick."  
  
"No, it's fine, really!" I bowed. "Thank you for the exercise..." It was time to test the waters a little more. "You've fought other girls?"  
  
"Ranmaaaaa! Are you in here?" That voice could only be...  
  
"Ah, Ukyou." Ranma stood quickly and bend down to help me up., "Akane, have you met Ukyou? Apparently she's... ah..."  
  
"Ranma's fiancee." Ukyou enjoyed rubbing that in my face. "Ranchan, are you beating up defenseless girls?"  
  
"Hey Ukyou, I'm not that kind of guy--"  
  
"Care to find out how 'defenseless' I am?" I glared at Ukyou, who was still standing in the doorway. She must have introduced herself to Ranma before I woke up today. Trying not to look intimidated by her short skirt and tight shirt I added, "Ranma was just having a little fun with his ORIGINAL fiancee."  
  
Ranma turned back to me and stared. He didn't seem too happy, but at least this time around he didn't insult my figure or my looks.  
  
=-=-=-=-=-=  
  
I finally got my chance to take a soothing dip in the tub, but it was later in the day after dinner. The quiet echoing of my splashes was enough to ease the stress of everything that went wrong today, namely Ukyou. I left as soon as I realized I couldn't do much by hounding Ranma. My revelation in the dojo about being betrothed to Ranma got me on his bad side, which ticked me off, too.  
  
Footsteps from the hallway grew louder as did a girl's humming. That girl entered the room and blanched upon seeing my naked body, for the second time today.  
  
"Uhhh..."  
  
I blinked. This could get interesting.  
  
"I, ah, take it that you're the Akane that my COUSIN, RANMA, is engaged to?" Oh-ho. Ranma was making an attempt to hide his curse. I grinned deviously.  
  
"Yes, that's the same one!" Trying not to blush, I held a steady gaze and watched Ranma nervously glancing at my body every so often. "It's pretty hot... how about some cool water over your back?"  
  
"S-sure..." Ranma gulped quiety and stared forcefully at the soap he, er, she brought in.  
  
I stood, wrapped a towel around my body and filled a bucket with water from the tub. Walking over to Ranma, I emptied the bucket over Ranma, who shrieked. It was interesting to watch his body shift back to a male one. He stood, alarmed, and turned to face me. "A-akane, um, uh,   
  
"Jusenkyou," I interrupted. Ranma's jaw nearly dropped to the floor. "At least wait until we're married before you start peeking. Why didn't you just leave when you saw me here?"  
  
"I-- I dunnow, I panicked, okay?" Ranma grabbed the bucket I held and covered himself with it.  
  
"...More than that, you were STARING. It's not like you haven't seen a naked girl before, you pervert!"  
  
"Hey, What's this crap about 'waiting until we're married' anyway?"  
  
"It was REFERRING to the fact that we're ENGAGED." I answered. "It's what our parents want, after all."  
  
"You know, I really thought we connected when we were doing that sparring, honestly. But when you say something like that and sit back to accept it without knowing what kind of guy I am first... I wonder what kind of person you are." Ranma stood to leave the bathroom. "I never agreed to marry ANYBODY."  
  
=-=-=-=-=-=  
  
"I'm such an idiot," I muttered and plopped onto my bed. I sighed, gazing out my open window.  
  
"What do I think, Ukyou? I dunnow anymore." The voice was distant, but not faint. It sounded like it came from... the roof? No, farther. I peeked out the window and spotted Ranma and Ukyou hanging out in a tree in the yard. Glaring at nobody in particular, I laid back and looked away from the window.  
  
"What was your family thinking, Ranchan?"  
  
Someone sighed out there. For the rest of the time that I was awake, there were no further words spoken.  
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Author's Notes: (December 2002)  
Some of you may notice that I don't write Shampoo's dialogue in broken English like in the U.S. released manga and anime. Part of the reason is because I don't really hear such freakish use of Japanese in the anime or the original manga when she speaks (then again, I don't know Japanese very well ^^;;;). In lieu of that, I made Shampoo's speech very formal, as if she were speaking out of a text book. It's almost like how I spoke French in France: in complete sentences because I wasn't very familiar with how to speak casually.   
  
When many Americans speak to others who speak English as a second language and hear broken English they make an assumption that said person isn't very intelligent. It takes work to be able to converse in a foreign language that you weren't born speaking, though. The idea that broken English = dumb still hangs in the back of some people's minds, so I didn't want Shampoo to be seen as unintelligent, I don't think she is.  
  
(May 2003)  
I just realized that I didn't mention that I'm open to some good C+C. ^^ I may not be aiming for any kind of notability as far as my writing goes, but I'm not adversed to improving nonetheless! Come on, you crazy English majors, help a girl out. XD 


	8. Making Her Move

Solar Demise - or - Oblivion has Gained on Us  
by Pink  
  
Part Eight - Making Her Move  
  
"Akane, are you going to sleep all day or have some breakfast for a change?" Nabiki stood over my bed, shaking me by the shoulder.  
  
"Is ...he down there?" I saw up rubbing my eyes. Thinking about what took place in the last month, I stared sullenly at my lap. No matter how many memories I tried to remind Ranma of, he never seemed to remember a thing. How could an entire month slip away without any progress? We stopped sparring together after a week. Everything I did to try to win him over alienated him further. Competing against Ukyou's cuteness, Shampoo's sexiness, or their cooking ability (out of the question) left me without any kind of advantage. It didn't feel like this Ranma was the same one I knew. If I were to totally win this Ranma over, would it realy be worth it? I grew more skeptical as the days passed. "If he's down there, I don't want to go."  
  
Nabiki moved her hand to my back. "Akane." She made sure that I was paying attention before speaking further. "Believe me when I say you WANT to come down and have breakfast with us." I raised an eyebrow. "How often am I wrong about something?"  
  
Nabiki turned and walked out. I sat up and stared blankly at my bedroom door. The voices downstairs were soft from here. I stood and walked out of my room. As I descended down the stairs, the voices became more and more coherent. I could make out who was speaking, which made me clench my fists. When I glanced at the table, my eyes caught purple. Shampoo and Ukyou were sitting on either side of Ranma, feeding him breakfast.  
  
"Good morning, everyone." I smiled at my family and Ranma's parents, bowing a little. I held a stare with Nabiki as I sat next to her, directly in front of Ranma.  
  
Nabiki gave me moral support in her hard stares at Shampoo and Ukyou. When I explained to my family about Ranma's incident with Shampoo, they immediately agreed to support me in getting our Ranma back. From behind Nabiki's glare, I pushed myself to look straight at Ranma, despite Ukyou and Shampoo's disapproval.  
  
"Morning, Ranma." I forced a smile for him, who returned it slowly, under the scrutiny of his other suitors. "Did you sleep well--"  
  
"Ranchan, Honey, would you mind trying a little bit of the okonomiyaki I made? I guarantee you'll love it." Ukyou interrupted.  
  
"You should first try the rice that I fried; it's still hot!" Shampoo interjected.  
  
We sat in uncomfortable silence as the radio news report played in the background. I looked up from my food for only a second, but it was easy to notice the angry looks that Ranma was getting from his and my parents. I looked down at my food, trying to immerse myself in the broadcast.  
  
"Yes," a make announcer muttered in monotone, "Big surprise here, tomorrow will be yet another scorcher."  
  
My chewing seemed to drown out most of the other sounds in the room.  
  
"In other news... it's HOT. Water levels in the ocean are beginning to show a dramatic rise. However, please remember to conserve your drinking and bathing water, as sea water is not a substitute..."  
  
I coughed quietly and reached for some more dried fish.  
  
"...sure Shampoo, Ukyou." Ranma answered, taking food from both. Ranma ate, timidly. "Thanks." He peered up at our family with a cautious gaze and glanced over to me. "Akane..?"  
  
"Hm?" I blinked.  
  
"Thanks, I slept fine."  
  
Nodding, I smiled a little. "I'm glad."  
  
"You know Ukyou, Shampoo, what you made is great!" They sighed happily, fawning over Ranma a little more. "Akane, try some of this!" Ranma reached for my bowl, while I was trying to fathom why he was doing such a thing. He was immediately stopped by Shampoo and Ukyou, who gave him hard looks.  
  
"Ranma, as much as I'd do anything for you, I don't think I can stand for this." Ukyou folded her arms.  
  
"I didn't make this for Akane, I made this for you." Shampoo added. "This wasn't intended for a girl who doesn't appreciate good food and can't cook to save her life." Shampoo smirked at me.  
  
"I didn't have this house built so that my daughter could be insulted by two girls without any shame." My father's facial expression was disturbingly calm as he spoke. "I still welcome you into my home even though your only intention is to get Ranma's attention."  
  
Nabiki 'hmmphed.' "More than that," she added, "If Akane is so gracious that she's sharing her fiancee with you two, the least you could do is make her a damned meal. You think you can waltz in here and do this in front of us forever?"  
  
"Nabiki-chan, that's fine." Ranma's mother spoke calmly. "If I were to accept either of these ladies as Ranma's wife, they would have to adjust their ethics a little bit first. Next, I wouldn't want girls with such bad manners as a part of my family. My Ranma has always been intended for Akane, and I'm happy about that."  
  
Ranma, Ukyou, and Shampoo stared bewildered. After a few quiet moments at the table, the radio playing faithfully in the background, Ranma stood.  
  
"Funny," he said exchanging looks with Nabiki and my dad, "I never knew I was supposed to be treated like a piece of property." He stared down at me; I slouched a little, intimidated by him. "You come out of nowhere and suddenly I'm obligated to YOU? Sorry-- no, I'm not gonna apologize. I don't 'belong' to anyone."   
  
"BAKA!" I jumped up, leaning over the table to yell towards Ranma. "I didn't come out of nowhere! Just because you can't remember me, that doesn't mean you have to act so cold! We get along when nobody's around, and you KNOW it!" Ranma looked taken aback as I dashed up the stairs, retreating into my room.  
  
=-=-=-=-=-=  
  
Night fell almost recklessly. I watched Ranma and Ukyou hang out in the tree again, figuring they didn't realize how easy it was to hear their conversation. They spoke so comfortably. Tonight, I didn't have the heart to open my window to hear what they were actually saying. I crouched low at my desk so that I wouldn't be seen.  
  
Whatever they were talking about, they looked as if they were having fun. Ranma laughed a little and pointed to himself, waving his hands wildly. I looked away, remembering the first kisses we shared, by the ocean. My heart fluttered at the memory, as if it were happening again. The shock of that kiss never dulled, even in hindsight. I lingered on that thought and suddenly felt my breath wavering. Before I realized why, I swept a tear off of my cheek. His words from before came to mind. Live the rest of these days with no regrets. I slammed my fists onto my desk as the kiss repeated in my head unmercifully. "Dammit!" I sobbed. I wanted to live by those words, not only because Ranma said them but because I believed them. It was frustrating to do so in a bleak situation. How do you live without any regrets when every option is something you'll regret?  
  
I looked back up at Ranma and Ukyou. Ranma was grinning when suddenly Ukyou pulled him by the shoulders and kissed him hard. Stunned, Ranma stared at her with his mouth open. She waved goodbye, jumping out of the tree. I stood up out of my chair, watching Ranma recover. Tears burned down my face. I sighed, staring at him, bidding a silent goodbye to our past life. Just as I reached to close my blinds, Ranma turned his head towards my window and noticed me looking at him.  
  
I only hesitated for a second. I stared at Ranma helplessly before I turned rushing out of my room, running down the stairs. I barely noticed Nabiki and Mrs. Saotome calling me, but I refused to stop. I figured that if I were to disappear, I could find happiness away from Ukyou and Shampoo. Away from Ranma. *Where are you going?* My thoughts said tauntingly. I mentally retorted with indifference. My mind wandered to thoughts of Ryouga. Even though I turned him down, part of me considered him as a fall-back crush. It was too dark to see what I was leaping over as I ran. Faintly I could hear a voice behind me.  
  
"Akane!" it screamed. I pushed myself harder, my feet padding against the cement in sharp snaps. The last thing I wanted was to be forced to answer to him. He was probably chasing me because he was told to, the bastard. I turned a corner, heading for the nearest fork in the road. I could still hear him behind me, but I knew he wasn't close yet. *If I turned one of these corners before he does, I'll lose him!* Gasping, I pushed harder, ignoring the bits of broken glass and jagged pebbles that I stepped on. There was no way I wanted to chase after someone who didn't love me. Unlike Ukyou and Shampoo, I couldn't stand to pine after someone who openly rejected me. That wasn't the same Ranma I knew, anyway.  
  
*Ryouga will take care of me.* I almost missed the cat that was running in front of me, but I hopped over it in time. *Ryouga loves Akari, now.* My tears burned and blurred my vision. Just as I looked back to see if Ranma was behind me, I felt my foot stepping through something jagged, making a metallic crunch. I fell, landing on my elbows. My foot had gone through the spokes of an old bike tire. I scanned down the street and noticed that Ranma was closing in on me. Ripping the tire away, I frisbeed it at Ranma and launched myself back up. The pain I was ignoring was starting to set in; I flinched when I stood on my feet again. I'm sure they were bleeding, but it was too dark to distinguish between dirt and blood in a glance. In addition my body was trembling from the way I pushed it. Jumping the walls around my house was hard enough on its own, and trying to beat Ranma's speed wasn't easy. I tried to continue running, but the effort was pathetic. At best, I could limp quickly.  
  
Ranma caught up with me effortlessly and pulled me by the hand. I turned around, trying to slap him but he blocked me. "Let me go!" I screamed desperately. I was in front of a house with lights on, and someone peered out at us through a crack in the doorway.  
  
Ranma's voice was steady. "Akane, let's go home now, what the hell were you doing?"  
  
I stared deliberately at the figure standing in the house. "Please! Somebody help me, this man is trying to kill me!" Ranma's eyes grew wild. I struggled to break away from Ranma's grip, but it was obvious that he was stronger than me.  
  
"No I'm not! This girl is crazy!" Ranma screamed in reply. "Akane, come home with me!"  
  
"Get OFF of me!" I screeched, kicking Ranma between the legs as hard as I could. His grip loosened enough for me to yank my hands away and run more. The pain was still present in my legs and feet, but after the brief rest, I could keep going. Unfortunately, it wasn't any help. This time Ranma tackled me to the ground before picking us both up.  
  
"I'm not giving up, Akane. I'm faster than you." Ranma's arms closed around my entire body.  
  
"What's going to stop me from leaving once I get home? You can't watch me 24 hours a day, so just give up." I head-butted Ranma with the back of my head, and elbowed him in the stomach. His grip tightened, but I continued to struggle. "Leave me ALONE, damn you!" I screamed. "I'm NOT coming home, even if you take your bitch of a girlfriend and--"  
  
"It felt WRONG, Akane."  
  
I don't think they ever really stopped, but I noticed tears shooting down my face again. I grabbed a street sign for support, exhaused and trembling violently.  
  
"Look, I know that's why you ran. I don't even begin to understand how you can love someone you hardly know, but I can't say that I MIND if, ah... cute girls like me..." Ranma's hands moved to my arms, his hands closing firmly around them. "...er, but my point was that I thought I'd let you know: I know you've got a thing for me--"  
  
"--I do NOT have a THING for you!" I interrupted instinctively, regretting what I said as soon as it was blurted out.  
  
"..." Ranma sighed, lifting me over his shoulder. I started to protest but realized I was in too much pain and still winded from running. Carrying me through the beat up streets like a sack of rice, Ranma spoke again. "What I wanted to TELL you, was that I'm telling Ukyou I just want to be friends."  
  
"You don't mind if cute girls like you, but you're telling her you want to be friends?" I replied. "What's the point of THAT?"   
  
The confusion in Ranma's voice showed that he was trying to find the reason as he explained it to me. "There's just... something that didn't feel right when she kissed me. I like her, I think she's cute, but there was just something that went OFF in my head. It just felt like I was kissing my sister, it was creepy."  
  
My face spread into a smile: the widest one I'd worn in too long. I nodded, speaking softly. "I see."  
  
"Maybe I shouldn't even say this," Ranma mumbled. "Again, I just don't get why you even care about me so much..."  
  
*You didn't believe me when I told you,* I answered mentally.  
  
"...but for one reason or another, I feel like I already know you in some ways, Akane."  
  
"Why did you follow me?" The words escaped from my lips shyly.  
  
Ranma remained silent.   
  
=-=-=-=-=-=  
  
Ranma led me to my room, motioning for me to get into bed. "Akane... I could have been nicer to you through all of this. I'm sorry--" I closed his mouth, brushing his lips closed with my index finger and shaking my head.  
  
"You were just being yourself, Ranma." I climbed into bed. A handful of different feelings swam in my stomach, some conflicting with each other. Ukyou was out of the competition for Ranma. Ranma let on that he didn't exactly hate me. I already asked myself what the point of being in love with this Ranma was. Without his memories of what we did together, he was generally the same Ranma. His relationships with everyone except for Ukyou and I were the same. In a sense though, this wasn't Ranma. To him, any ties we had in the past were erased completely. Was there even a reason for me to love him now?  
  
If love had an off-switch, would I even turn it off?  
  
Ranma sat on the edge of my bed. "I'm going to clean and bandage those feet. Are you gonna need another blanket besides this sheet?"  
  
"No way, it's going to be hot when I wake up." My words were a little slurred, but I smiled up at Ranma. He prodded me to lay my head down, running his hands through my hair. "Good... ni...ght..." I whispered as sleep took me.  
  
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Author's Notes: (January 2003)  
If you read the original version of this part, you would have noticed a little something that was missing! ^_~ I thought about this when I rewrote it, and decided that maybe, we didn't need Ranma to get his memory back. This is fine for now, let's see what happens when it goes further... :O  
  
(May 2003)  
This is where the original story left off. ^^ Incidentally, this is also where I leave off now, as Chapter 9 is in the works. If you actually feel inclined to read more, feel free to read the side stories to chapter 5 (They are posted as a seperate fic).   
  
If you made it this far: THANK YOU SO MUCH! ^o^/ I wouldn't mind some good writing tips. :3 


	9. Chance Encounter

Solar Demise - or - Oblivion has Gained on Us  
by Pink  
  
Part Nine - Chance Encounter  
  
----------------------------  
  
"Are you sure those gimpy feet are okay?"  
  
"I was fine yesterday, and I'm fine... NOW!" To put emphasis on what I was saying, I launched myself at Ranma with a flying kick. He laughed, spinning out of the way and immediately returning with a kick of his own. I leaped high, flipping over him in order to attack from behind. Ranma and I both knew that he had to defend and the only question that remained was his means of doing so. My luck ran out. In a split second Ranma tumbled backwards and used his arms to launch himself straight up at me while I was busy contending with gravity. My attack was foiled, and I would have landed painfully if it weren't for Ranma's attempt to catch me. He wrapped his arms around my body, my arms pinned to my sides, before we both crashed and tumbled across the floor.  
  
We laughed in fun, and also at the messy way I lay on top of him. "Man, you almost got me there," Ranma huffed. "I guess I've gotta say you're right, there's nothing wrong with those feet! Must be the way I bandanged them."  
  
"Uh-huh, I suppose so," I panted. Ever since the cuts healed, Ranma and I sparred all day in between meals and encounters with Shampoo and Ukyou. "Ugh, I think it's time for a bath now."   
  
Ranma nodded. "I'll go in after you, let me know." He sat up, grinning and waiting for me to move. I suddenly felt an urge to postpone the bath.  
  
"Mmm, can I just lay here in your lap?" I half-joked. Ranma's smile faded a little and his eyes shifted.  
  
"Absolutely not," shot a voice coming from the dojo entrance. Ukyou stood with her hands on the door frame while the sun filtered in from behind her. "After all, he could have this sweet-smelling young woman in a cute little dress on his lap." She stuck a tongue out at me and entered the dojo, moving towards Ranma. I stood, laughing inwardly.  
  
"Well, whatever. I'll see you at dinner, Ranma."  
  
"Er, I actually invited Ukyou to have dinner with me, Akane. I'll see you at eight o'clock tonight for a rematch, okay?" Ranma looked at me with a serious face and I immediately understood what he was going to tell her at that dinner. It was overdue; it had been days since Ukyou kissed Ranma and he still failed to tell her how he felt. Tonight, things were going to be messy for him.  
  
"...but don't keep your hopes up Honey, I may steal him away for longer than dinner." Ukyou winked at me, and linked an arm with Ranma's. Rolling my eyes, I waved, heading towards the bath.  
  
=-=-=-=-=-=  
  
After dinner, I headed towards Furinkan High. Lately I made a habit of visiting Daisuke on a pretty regular basis, cleaning off his gravestone, and leaving flowers when I could find some. Every so often I would run into Hiroshi and we would talk, usually about nothing in particular. Today when I reached the former high school I found Hiroshi waiting. His eyes moved to me and raising a hand, he greeted me in his usual manner.  
  
"This one's yours." Hiroshi beamed at me, taking my hand.  
  
"Huh?"  
  
Hiroshi closed my fingers around a stem. My lips spread in a thin smile when I eyed a pink gladiola. "Thanks, Hiroshi-kun."  
  
"So, how goes things with Ranma today?" Hiroshi patted a spot on the grass next to where he was sitting and I complied, sitting down and leaning my back against his.  
  
I exhaled pointedly. "Same as usual; he still doesn't remember a thing. Still sparring, though."  
  
"You like it?"  
  
"Yeah, of course..." I rocked back and forth in my seat with a silly grin. "I mean, when I talk to him I still see how I fell in love with him. When you take out all of the complications in our lives, he's so fun to be around, he's nice, and it doesn't hurt that he's good-looking." I stopped myself before I started to ramble. Sighing, I swiveled on my palms to face Hiroshi. "The Ranma I got to know was like this, only he knew me."  
  
"He's crazy to forget you." Hiroshi threw me a lopsided smile. I felt his breath colliding with my neck as he tipped his head to rest on my shoudler. "Man, you smell good." He whispered.  
  
I laughed, pushing a little dust off of Daisuke's grave. "So what's going on with you?"  
  
"Mmm, got turned down again by Tetsuko," Hiroshi laughed. "I'm getting a little tired of it, I guess. I don't even know why I keep trying to ask her out when there are days that pass that make me wonder why I even like her."  
  
"You poor thing," I sighed.  
  
"Nah, it's for the better anyway," Hiroshi pulled away from me, turning to face me. "You're a lot prettier than she is!"  
  
I rolled my eyes. "Aren't you the flatterer today? First the flower, and then you go on about how good I smell, and now you're calling me pretty again. Why DON'T you have a girlfriend, Hiroshi-kun?"  
  
He laughed a little louder than before, looking straight at me. Our eyes locked, and suddenly I felt pangs of caution in my chest. *Please don't let this be what I think it is...*  
  
Hiroshi's expression grew serious. He raised a hand to my face and pulled me closer, brushing my cheek with a kiss. "Akane-chan," he breathed. I was surprised when I did nothing to push him away. Why? My mouth opened slightly in confusion; I squeaked in response. I watched Hiroshi look hesitant before closing his eyes and covering my mouth with his. He nibbled at my lips while my mind raced, alarmed and confused. My fists clenched under the weight of my trembling arms as I held my torso up straight. What was going on didn't make sense to me. Even though I had spent so much time talking to Hiroshi about how much I wanted to be with Ranma, he was doing this! I wasn't pounding him into the ground, either.  
  
"Hiroshi-kun," I gasped. He wasn't, by any stretch of the imagination, a bad kisser. For a few brief moments I sighed, my heart pounding against my insides and thumping audibly in my ears. The fact that I actually enjoyed this sudden kiss scared and excited me. My chest heaved as his mouth pressed harder against mine. Hiroshi punctuated each brush of his lips with quiet moans until my resolve was shattered and I kissed back. For a moment, my mind didn't care about the implications of what I was doing. I craved affection so badly that I closed my eyes, imagining Ranma in his place.  
  
*You want Ranma!* My heart screamed in a frantic reminder. I broke the kiss, furrowing my eyebrows at Hiroshi. He looked as shaken as I felt.  
  
"Akane-chan... oh God, I'm sorry!" He covered his mouth, forcing a stare down towards Daisuke's grave.  
  
"I-- I'm sorry too, I don't want to give you the wrong idea." I couldn't bring myself to look into his eyes.  
  
"Yeah, yeah..." Daisuke shook his head vigorously. "I'm so sorry, I was just feeling a little lonely."  
  
"N-no, I think I needed that a little bit." I pressed my balled fist to my chest, still breathing heavily. "You're REALLY good at that."  
  
Hiroshi threw his head back, laughing as if to distract from what just happened. "Wow, what a compliment! If it's worth anything to you, I only did it because you're ridiculously sexy."  
  
I bit my lip, smiling a little. Before Hiroshi could say anything more, I kissed him once more, hard on the lips.   
  
"Let's draw the line right there." The shock on his face was classic as I got up.  
  
Hiroshi coughed. "Well, I'm glad you got that out of your system!"  
  
"Yeah," I giggled nervously. "A little more and I may have forgotten about Ranma."  
  
"That bastard had better hurry up and remember you before I try to steal you away, then." Hiroshi waved goodbye as I walked off.   
  
=-=-=-=-=-=  
  
Something in my spirits was released. I grinned as I left the school grounds. As I came around to the front of the building I recognized a familiar figure standing at the gates. My smile grew even larger as I began to run towards it.  
  
"Ryouga-kun!" I yelled. When I noticed his expression, my running slowed to a walk. "Ryouga-kun, how's it going?"  
  
The Lost Boy's face seemed to be searching mine. His gaze was incredulous, even a little betrayed. "I didn't want to believe it was you."  
  
I blinked, tipping my head to one side. "What do you mean?" In response, Ryouga seethed and glared.  
  
"What the HELL is going on with you? Last time I see you you're distraught and sobbing over Ranma, but I heard rumors... that maybe you two weren't stupid, and that you hit it off?" Ryouga shook his head, a stray breeze tugging at his hair and the bandana he wore. "THAT guy was NOT Ranma, it was Hiroshi. Am I wrong?"  
  
I stammered. The fact that someone saw made the situation so much more uncomfortable. "Well, no... but you don't understand what happened..."  
  
"...so then you didn't ask for it."   
  
"If you're asking me if I meant to have that happen, then definitely no."  
  
"...so then you didn't like it."  
  
"Well, it's not exactly that..."  
  
"You LIKED IT?! What about Ranma?" Crap, this was a potentially volatile situation.  
  
"I still love Ranma," I replied without hesitation. "But things are complicated now. Please give me time to explain..." I began to walk and motioned for Ryouga to follow me. He hesitated at first, but reshouldered his backpack and walked alongside me.  
  
I sighed, distraught. Clouds were starting to form in the sky, and the smell of evening was thick. As Ryouga and I rounded a corner he finally spoke.  
  
"I didn't know I would react like this... but then again I didn't see this coming in a million years." Ryouga murmured. His tone was still a little reserved.  
  
"I didn't see this coming either. Not even as a hypothetical situation." I answered shyly. I was a little scared of how Ryouga would react to anything I said.  
  
"I'll bet."  
  
"...you know, I wasn't really ever the type to chase guys. I hated boys in school, you know."  
  
There was no answer for a while. We walked a little in silence before Ryouga suddenly grabbed me by the shoulders, shaking me a little.  
  
"Why wasn't I good enough for that, Akane? I wasn't nearly as forward as Hiroshi, and I got a mallett to the... dammit, nevermind." Ryouga lowered his head, trying to stop himself from breathing heavily. He gently pinned me to a wall. "I didn't think I still had any kind of feelings like this, sorry. I guess I was only okay with 'losing' you if it were to Ranma."  
  
I looked sadly into Ryouga's eyes. I myself didn't quite understand why Hiroshi was so easy to deal with, but there was nothing I could do to change the way I felt. "I don't know if it makes anything right," I replied, "But despite what you've seen today, if I've been 'lost' to anyone that would still be Ranma."  
  
As we stared at each other, footsteps sounded. The source of them was heading right for us, and quickly too. They halted suddenly. I blinked, a little thrown off.  
  
"God, why you, and why now?"   
  
"Ukyou...?"  
  
"Shut up." Ukyou wiped her face with her palms, obviously drying tears. "He's yours; as far as I'm concerned you two idiots are made for each other. I don't believe I even bothered..."  
  
Ryouga released my shoulders, looking back and forth between Ukyou and myself.  
  
"Hey, Ukyou...? Come back here!" It looked like Ranma was close behind.  
  
"Don't follow me!" Ukyou screamed before running away. The clicking of her high heels echoed down the street and she was gone as quickly as she appeared.  
  
"Ukyou?" Ranma appeared from around a corner and stopped when he saw Ryouga and I. "Oh, hey, Akane, THERE you are. Hey Ryouga!"  
  
"Hey," I replied meekly. Ryouga stayed quiet.  
  
"I'm sure you can guess what happened with her," Ranma looked at Ryouga briefly as he spoke.  
  
"Yeah," Ryouga answered. "Look, I've got to go. I'll see you two later." Ryouga glanced at me sadly, and ran. All I could do was watch him leave.  
  
"What was that all about?" Ranma scratched his head.  
  
Moving away from the wall, I walked over to Ranma, burying my face in his shoulder. A little sob escaped from my lips, and I slid my hand up to cup his face.  
  
"Uh," Ranma answered. "You okay?" Tentatively, he placed his hand on my back for comfort.  
  
"It's a little past 8:00, isn't it," I sniffled.  
  
Ranma laughed softly.   
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Author's Notes: (May 2003)  
  
Eh, I feel like it's missing something, but maybe some C+C will give some inspiration? *cough* @_@;  
  
I'm quite sure there is at least one person out there who wants to smack me for that little incident with Hiroshi. Hey, it just kinda came out. ^o^;;; This chapter, paired with some words from a particular someone has really helped me to reestablish what direction this story is heading in. Thanks for reading! XD 


	10. Skippable Chapter Ten Teaser

Solar Demise Chapter 10 - Teaser  
  
Notes: (March/April 2004) Hey guys, I know it's been a while. Well, it happens to people all the time yet I never thought it would happen to me. Laptop crashed. Everything lost. Chapter 10 was on it. My notes for the fic until the -end- were on it. Looks like the ending won't be the same as I had originally envisioned, after all now. Oh well~  
  
(Would you kill me if I said that all this time I'd been simultaneously working on an Inuyasha fanfic, too? Eh heh heh, just what I need, to spread myself even thinner. .; )  
  
If you are curious, my days are very full, and fanfic writing is reserved for when I'm ready to go to bed. I put my laptop on my lap in bed and write until I fall asleep. Sometimes I get a lot done, sometimes I just pass out and it's up to my husband to put the computer away. The process makes for slow updates but it's really the only time I have. I literally work 'till I -drop-, people. XD  
  
Anyway, as a token of good will and a sign that, yes, dammit, I'm going to continue this fic, here's a tentative chunk of chapter 10 for you guys to maw on:  
  
=-=-=-=-=-=  
  
Shit, he thought to himself. It was well past twilight and he was lost in a maze of streets, hopefully far from Nerima by now. He had walked long enough; he figured he was in the next town by now. Away from Her. A chilly breeze bit at Ryouga's shoulders as he trudged down another street. He shivered, cursing at the fact that it was hard to see without streetlights. Walking through a dark forest was better, he decided. He could start a fire without worrying about whether or not he'd get arrested for arson. It wasn't like he couldn't take on the cops, of course, though it wasn't like he -wanted- to start trouble. Hibiki Ryouga was brought up to be polite and well-mannered... unlike a certain rude jerk of a-- no, he wasn't that bad actually. Ryouga sighed in resignation.  
  
Saotome Ranma had too many things that Ryouga wanted, and did nothing to get them, either. Girls fawned over him even though he neglected their feelings. He fought so many strong people, always managing to win somehow. He picked up new fighting techniques and even learned to create his own. Ryouga felt as if he had to push himself beyond his limits just to barely keep up. Every time he saw himself in Ranma's shoes a familiar anger burned in his belly. He would have handled things so much better than Ranma did.  
  
"I'm such a kid," Ryouga sighed. He thought he'd gotten over this, but the memory of seeing Akane and Hiroshi replayed in his head. The look on her face was so cute and flushed as he kissed her. Would she look like that with Ryouga? How soft did her lips feel? Ryouga shook those thoughts out of his mind. "No!" he stopped walking for a second to compose himself, using one hand to lean on a wall. The image of Akane's lips appeared in his mind again. In a small fit of frustration, Ryouga began poking holes in the wall his hand was previously resting on. He groaned, agitated, increasing his pace.  
  
"Hey! Quit vandalizing my building!"  
  
"Huh?" Ryouga spun around quickly to face the voice. "Oh, I'm sorry--"  
  
The figure folded its arms, walking out the front door towards Ryouga. "You lost again?"  
  
*Aw, dammit.* Ryouga's stomach sunk. His feelings became an open book when he slumped, reshouldering his backpack. "Yeah, I guess so, Ukyou."  
  
She snorted, rolling her eyes. "Well, considering how late it is I suggest you get your sorry butt in here and stay for the night."  
  
=-=-=-=-=-=  
  
Ah hah hah hah, I'm having a few dillemmas about how things are going to transpire so let's see what happens in the finished version. Until then... 


	11. The Real Chapter Ten, Clarity

­Solar Demise - or - Oblivion Has Gained on Us

by Pink(u)

Part Ten - Clarity

Hey guys, it's been a while. ;; For those of you not in the know, I've currently got two ongoing stories: this one, and my Inuyasha fanfic, _Fade and Flare_ (accessible through my profile). If you're sitting around bored some time, feel free to read it!

Well, this story (at least the main chapters) has been narrated by Akane, but it's come to a point where we need to break away from Akane's firsthand experience to move things along. Hopefully this isn't too horrible of a writing _faux pas_.

Enjoy, nonetheless! The first part of this chapter is a more evolved version of the teaser I posted last time.

-----

_Shit_, he thought to himself. It was well past twilight and he was lost in a maze of streets, hopefully far from Nerima by now. He had walked long enough; he figured he was in the next town already. Away from Her. A chilly breeze bit at Ryouga's shoulders as he trudged down another street. He shivered, cursing at the fact that it was hard to see without streetlights. Walking through a dark forest was better, he decided. He could start a fire without worrying about whether or not he'd get arrested for arson. It wasn't like he couldn't take on the cops, of course, though it wasn't like he -wanted- to start trouble. Hibiki Ryouga was brought up to be polite and well-mannered... unlike a certain rude jerk of a-- no, he wasn't that bad actually. Ryouga sighed in resignation.

Saotome Ranma had too many things that Ryouga wanted, and did nothing to get them, either. Girls fawned over him even though he neglected their feelings. He fought so many strong people, always managing to win somehow. He easily picked up new fighting techniques and even learned to create his own. Ryouga felt as if he had to push himself beyond his limits just to barely keep up. Every time he saw himself in Ranma's shoes a familiar anger burned in his belly. He would have handled things so much better than Ranma did.

_There was an opportunity to have her,_ something inside of him asserted. Would he have been able to chip away at Akane's defenses back when Ranma initially left her? Ryouga wasn't too sure. His mind replayed a seemingly distant memory, along a gorgeous beach where he walked with Akane arm in arm. Back then he was convinced all too much that he didn't enjoy the moment as much as he should have. Back then Ryouga was more concerned about his suffering friend, and had thought he could finally completely embrace the love that Akari unwaveringly offered to him with no regrets now that Akane admitted what she really wanted.

Hiroshi had been a friend from school; Ryouga knew that much. Even though Hiroshi witnessed a lot of their antics and a handful of fights it was painfully obvious to Ryouga that he didn't even grasp how important it was for Ranma and Akane to be together. Hiroshi had probably never heard of Mount Phoenix and Saffron, and wasn't there to witness the sheer desolation and hopelessness in Ranma when everyone thought Akane was dead. Hiroshi would have run home crying in the face of something as massive as the Yamato no Orochi if he could even make it that far into Ryugenzawa without becoming dinner for a giant lizard. Hiroshi couldn't possibly fathom and certainly not endure the sacrifice and pain Ranma experienced without a second thought; from fights, training, compromises of his manhood, and culinary assault, all for Akane!

_Not at all_, Ryouga decided. No matter how much of a friend Akane may have seen him as, Ryouga knew that Hiroshi did not belong in their group of martial artists friends and rivals. The caliber of experiences such a group had under their collective belts could only be wild fantasy to someone as painfully normal as Hiroshi. Their lives were touched by the world's strongest, the world's strangest, and other phenomena from the far edges of human existence. Ranma was the center of this group, unequivocally bound to Akane, their darling. There was nothing to explain it save for the belief in this, one that had slowly manifested in Ryouga's heart.

This was why Ryouga had let things go. This was why Hiroshi was not good enough for one of their own. As 'friendly' as Hiroshi may have been he selfishly tried to take Akane for himself, smearing her with the stench of normalcy.

_Look at how dramatic I've made things out to be._ "I'm such a kid," Ryouga sighed. He thought he'd gotten over this, but the memory of seeing Akane and Hiroshi replayed in his head. The look on her face was so cute and flushed as he kissed her. Would she look like that with Ryouga? How soft did her lips feel? Ryouga shook those thoughts out of his mind. "No!" he stopped walking for a second to compose himself, using one hand to lean on a wall. The image of Akane's lips appeared in his mind again. In a small fit of frustration, Ryouga began poking holes in the wall his hand was previously resting on. He groaned, agitated, increasing his pace.

"Hey! Quit vandalizing my building!"

"Huh?" Ryouga spun around quickly to face the voice. "Oh, I'm sorry--"

The figure folded its arms, walking out the front door towards Ryouga. "Y'lost again?"

_Aw, dammit._ Ryouga's stomach sunk. His feelings became an open book when he slumped, reshouldering his backpack. "Yeah, I guess so, Ukyou."

She snorted, rolling her eyes. "Well, considering how late it is I suggest you get your sorry butt in here and stay for the night."

-----

We hadn't said anything to each other on the walk home last night. I was itching to ask Ranma about what had happened with Ukyou but felt like I didn't need to; the end result was clear enough. The first couple of days after were tense; we were used to Ukyou's frequent visits and waited for her each day. I felt a mix of relief and hesitation at the end of the first day, when we had not seen her. I thought to myself that I was one step closer to being with Ranma. Shampoo was not much of an obstacle.

I pictured her tear-stained face as she ran away. Was that what I looked like when I experienced the same kind of pain? I sympathized with her because we were the same in what we wanted. Part of me felt guilty, wanting to reach out to her as a friend. I wanted to be there for her, telling her that things would be fine if she just moved on and forgot about Ranma. However because we were the same in our desires I didn't buy those sentiments. There's no way that Ukyou would, either.

When it came down to it, though, I finally realized that in being happy I had to hurt people. With knowledge of how much my feelings cost others I still realized that deep down, I could live with all that. I simply wanted to be with Ranma. Whether or not he remembered our past, we shared a natural closeness. Even on the day we met I experienced a kind of comfort with him, one that nobody else had ever given me. The first night that Ukyou did not come became the night that all of my apprehensions about the matter cleared. Even if Ranma never remembered his past with me, I would simply make more memories with him, no matter how many times Shampoo tried to erase them.

What Ukyou and Shampoo knew and what I never realized was that I needed no trickery and no elaborate schemes to make Ranma love me. I just had to be me.

Even though I had been guilty of the same tendencies as theirs at times I knew it deep down. What they failed to acknowledge was that love could not be forced.

It was now three days after we had last seen Ukyou. Alone I lay on my side next to the open shoji, staring out at the dojo. My face was pressed against a cool wooden floor, my arms spilled out in front of me as the hint of a breeze combed over my body. Dinner wasn't for another couple of hours but the sun had already sunk below the skyline. While most of the sky was still a clear blue, hints of orange were starting to appear. Though I had long since become used to it there was always something unsettling in the fact that the evening colors contradicted the humid heat. I could feel my eyelids sinking with thoughts about the weather and Ukyou and I, circling in my mind as I drifted off.

-----

"Hey, Akane."

They were the first words that I was able to make out as I woke. A hand gently shook me and my eyelids gradually lifted. Two figures peered down at me as I slowly sat up.

"Uh, hey, Hiroshi. Hi Ranma."

"Hiroshi just wanted to hang out for a bit..." Ranma said. "But I'll be with you guys later, I gotta do something."

"What? Hiroshi hardly comes over, why don't you stay?"

He paused, with an expression I couldn't read. "Wish I could, but I'll have to make it up to you guys later. Have fun." My eyebrow raised as he disappeared into another room. Something in his voice seemed strangely detached, but I ignored any further thoughts about it.

I straightened my hair out a bit, using my fingers as a crude comb, and stretched my legs out. Hiroshi smiled at me, taking a seat next to the shoji. The smells of dinner wafted through the air; I could hear a light clattering of pots and plates in the kitchen. "So, you gonna stay for dinner?"

"Hmm, it smells great, but I'll have to pass. I was just stopping by on my way to see my aunt. Just wanted to see what you were up to since we parted on such a weird note." My heart jumped.

"About that," I said in a lowered voice. My eyes combed the area for anyone who would be listening. Upon neither seeing nor hearing anybody I continued. "I... I'm sorry about that. I don't know what I was thinking at the time, it was just a spur of the moment thing and I don't want you to get the wrong idea--"

"--no, no, I know." Hiroshi leaned up against a wall and cast his gaze out towards the sky. "Unfortunately, My Dear Akane, I have no delusions about you and I. I'm far from a Kunou Tatewaki in that regard."

"Yeah." I stared down at my toes, tapping them together.

We sat together for a little bit in much-needed yet comfortable silence.

"Y'know." Hiroshi spoke out of the blue.

"Hm?"

"The sunset... looks gorgeous."

"Yeah."

"But its colors are only so vivid and bright when there's rampant air pollution."

I blinked. "...yeah, that sucks."

Hiroshi sighed. "People suck. Because our very existance is damaging to everything around us."

"We pay dearly for our beautiful things." My gaze lowered down and to one side, meandering across the shadows cast in the rock garden from the setting sun.

I was taken by surprise as Hiroshi turned towards me, suddenly pulling my face closer as he pressed against my lips with his. Unlike the previous time Hiroshi's kisses was demanding, bordering on ravenous. Unlike the previous time I did not accept what he was offering, instead fearing that Ranma would see and think the worst of me. I scooted back with my heels until I was against a wall, and yet Hiroshi did not relent.

"Stop," I mumbled against him. He brushed my lips with his tongue as he pulled back for air.

"Like I said before, Akane-chan, I have no delusions about you and me. Not only did you like it back then, you came back for more."

My palm met Hiroshi's cheek with a crisp snap. "Your memory is selective, Hiroshi-kun. I also said that we draw the line there."

With a smile Hiroshi rubbed the reddening spot on his face. "All right, I got what I came for. A man has to try, Akane-chan." He put his free hand over mine, squeezing it slightly. "We're friends, and we'll leave it at that."

After glaring pointedly at him I sighed, ruffling his hair a bit. "I can't stay mad at you. Yes, friends."

"Right. And I, now having been freed of misconceptions, promise that you and I won't lock lips again."

"Thank you." A smile stretched across my face.

"...unless you start it. I could only have so much control. And on that note..." He slid down and off of the porch, being careful not to step into the rock garden as he headed for the exit. "I'll see you again at Daisuke's, won't I?"

"Yes!" I beamed, watching as he left. Soon after, Kasumi's voice sounded through the house. It was time to eat.

-----

"What's the matter, Akane? Too lethargic to practice, or what?" Tonight, Ranma was pretty rough on me. His advances were more aggressive; moves more cutthroat than a regular training session. Was he mad at me? I backflipped away from one of Ranma's drop kicks, barely dodging. The split second that Ranma was thrown off by my dodge was enough for me to retaliate, rushing up close to throw a few punches.

Ranma blocked all of them with a smirk while returning a few to me. I took a hit in the shoulder, and another closer to my chest. Something was definitely wrong. When Ranma's hits connected he usually just tapped me lightly, but these punches were gradually starting to hurt.

They didn't subside, either. He slipped into an Amaguriken, speeding up the onslaught so that I was completely unable to block or hit back. The dull ache building in my shoulders and ribs became more prominent and when I could no longer stand it I blocked messily before retreating back.

"Ranma, what are you doing?!" I swept my legs under his, causing him to jump. A moment of my hesitation and bad timing caused me to rise and catch the painful end of Ranma's roundhouse kick. It connected with my ribs; I flew backwards across the floor of the dojo, holding my stomach.

As all of the action suddenly blurred to a halt my body began to ache. Something was very wrong. Even before we started our nightly sparring I could feel a hint of animosity coming from Ranma. The pain was a verification of this as it ached throughout my body now. "Wh-what was that for? I could swear you weren't really pulling your punches."

"I was." Ranma kneeled next to me as I lay on the ground, averting his eyes away from mine.

Ignoring the pain for a bit, I sat up and tried to face him. I searched his eyes, looking for any indication of his sudden strange behavior. Ranma's chauvinism ran deep; he wasn't the type to fight most girls, let alone allow them to be hurt. What was he hiding, I wondered.

"Hey," I ventured. Ranma sat on his knees with his fists balled on his lap. Holding my ribs I scooted in front of him and lowered my head to peer into his sullen face. "I... well, you know I really care about you so if you need to talk about it I'll always be here for you. Don't bottle things up."

"Yeah," Ranma's downcast stare was off to one side. "I'm sure you care deeply for a _lot_ of people, don't you?"

My heart skipped a beat. The guilt from my encounter with Hiroshi remained fresh in my mind, as it had been only a couple of days since then. Paranoia kicked in. If he had seen the kiss I shared with, no, _received_ from Hiroshi today then surely he saw the slap that followed? My voice became shaky as I allowed the next words to come out. "Ranma, are you okay?"

Ranma stood and so did I. We locked eyes briefly. He paced across the floor with tight and deliberate movements, fists still balled at his sides. I followed him, trying to get him to look at me once more. He turned away completely then, cursing as he spun sharply, trying to avoid my face.

"Ranma," I called, still tailing him. The pain I felt in my body was nearly forgotten by now. I followed him into a corner of the dojo, standing high on my toes to meet his eyes. "Ranma, what happened?"

It was instantaneous; his hands clamped my arms and Ranma whirled us around, suddenly pushing me into the wall.

"I KNOW you don't like him as much as you like me. Say it!"

Everything froze for me. Damn it all and damn me more, I knew I shouldn't have let anything happen to begin with!

"What the hell are you doing to me, Akane?" He yelled, nearly frantic. His eyes turned desperate, tugging at my surprised stare. The hands on my arms tightened, shaking me lightly. "I... I could have killed him for what he did! How dare you let him touch you! How dare you let him... put his tongue in your mouth?"

"What?! Ranma, he may have tried but I didn't let him--"

"And that slap? He puts the moves on you after you slap him and all you can do is smile like a fucking schoolgirl? Why didn't you beat the HELL out of him?"

"Ranma, he's a nice guy and a really good friend. It wasn't like that."

"God DAMN it!" Ranma released one of my arms in order to punch a portion of the wall that was next to my head. "I don't understand why I'm reacting like this! God, it hurts... my head's hurting, Akane."

My body trembled as Ranma held me there. For a moment I had no idea what he was going to do.

"Don't... don't you dare..." my voice was shaky but I willed myself to continue. "I-if you try to attack me do you think I'm going to like you more than him?" Tears spilled down my cheeks. I closed my eyes, embarassed and unable to meet Ranma's stare. I shuddered in an exhale, sniffling a couple of times until I felt a hand against my cheek. My eyes met Ranma's as he rubbed my tears away with his thumb.

"Tell me you don't like him as much as you like me, Akane," Ranma pleaded in a deep, whispery voice. "Damn it, why did you do this to me?"

When Ranma's gaze softened I creased my eyebrows, cautiously bringing a hand to his face. I felt as if I had to enjoy this bittersweet moment. The first time that Hiroshi and I kissed it felt so much better as I pictured Ranma in his place. Being so intimate with the real thing had become a commodity.

"I'm not trying to do anything to you that you don't want, Ranma... But... I know that it doesn't matter if I like you more than Hiroshi, if _you_ don't like me more than Hiroshi does."

Suddenly I felt his hands sliding to my back. In one smooth movement Ranma pulled me against him, burrowing into my eyes with his heated gaze.

"You're..." Ranma blinked, his face then awash with clarity. His hands held me against him even tighter.

My eyes went wide when he looked at me. His lips spread in a smile with a comfortable realization now dawning on his face as I stared back at him. "Ranma," I breathed.

"You're engaged to _me_," he said simply.

Without breaking eye contact his hands came up to cup both of my cheeks in smooth and exact movements. With a slight nudge of his chest I was against the wall again, watching in near disbelief as he closed his eyes. He bent low, sweetly capturing my lips with his. There was no more ferociousness in him as he kissed me; I gasped and suddenly felt his tongue gently moving against mine. I felt a hand slide behind my head and fingers tangling into my hair as he deepened the kiss, his chest heaving when I finally kissed back.

Wrapping my arms around Ranma's waist, I pulled away for a breath. My lips were parted in a smile as I exhaled raggedly. "While I might like Hiroshi-kun..." I started, holding Ranma tighter in gentle reassurance, "I..." I pressed a kiss against his neck. "love..." I nibbled on his chin. "You." I placed a chaste kiss onto his lips. "You only."

Ranma's grey eyes sparkled, his gaze now smouldering. In the corner of the dojo on that quiet night our kisses continued in lieu of any further sparring, physical or verbal, yet just as heated.

-----

Author's Notes: (November 2004)

It gets harder and harder to write this, partially because I'm always so busy, but also because it's a messy fiasco that I thought up while in middle school, and started writing in high school. I'll give you a little perspective on this: I'm in my early twenties and married now. ;; Not exactly writing with the same mindset I started with here.

Hopefully you guys don't mind, though... Thank you for reading, as always! Even though all of this time passes I still enjoying perpetuating this literary mess I call a Ranma fanfic! :D (Psst, hopefully my Inuyasha fic is better... :blatantplug:)

Until next time!


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